The Kids Are All Right
by dabbling
Summary: Another story in my AU from Legacy. This one is stand alone, so you don't have to read that to get this. Just know that B/A are married, M/C are married, & they have grown and nearly grown kids. It centers around the kids, but is very much a B/A M/C crime story. Spoilers for Frame, & for every episode Nicole was ever in. Listen to "The Kids Are Alright" by The Who for a fun theme.
1. Chapter 1

The Kids Are All Right

Chapter 1

"You're kidding, right?" Andy Logan looked at his best friend. "I mean, she's kinda like my sister."

Darren stared at Andy. "But, Andy. She's hot. And she's in college."

"Katie? Hot?" Andy shook his head. "You have no idea, do you?" Darren's eyes were pleading. Finally, Andy gave in. "All right, all right. I'll ask her."

There was a knock at the door, and Mike Logan opened it without waiting for a reply. The door was slowed when it hit a pile of dirty laundry on the floor. Mike shoved it open anyway.

"Andy, your mother wants to see you. Hello, Darren."

"Hi, Mr. Logan."

"All right, Dad," Andy said as he stepped around his friend, the laundry, his Dad, and jogged down the steps.

* * *

"We've got to plan your service project, or you're never gonna make Eagle Scout."

"Aw, Mom, there's plenty of time!"

Carolyn's face grew stern. "Look here, Andrew Logan. You have worked too hard for too long to let this slide now. And you do know what Eagle can mean for you, right?"

"Sure, Mom. Something nice for my resume."

"And scholarships. And networking. Once you're an Eagle Scout, you're an Eagle forever, Andy. It's important."

"Dad wasn't a scout."

"He would have been if he'd had the chance."

"Still, he made Detective at Major Case. And he's got his own business now. He didn't need Eagle Scout on his resume."

"Think how far I would have gone if I _had_ been a scout," Mike interjected, walking into the conversation decidedly.

Andy rolled his eyes. "Aw, c'mon, Dad!"

Mike got irritated. His voice was harsh. "You're not me, Andy. And I spent a hell of a lot of time and money to make sure you had more and better than I ever did. So don't use me as an excuse to bail on your responsibilities." He turned and grabbed a soda from the refrigerator. "I didn't freeze my ass off in the mountains camping with 20 nine year olds for nothing," he grumbled.

Darren walked in, timidly. "Uh, Mr. Logan? Is it all right if Andy comes to my house for dinner?"

Mike glanced over at his wife. Almost imperceptively, she nodded. "Sure, Darren. Andy," Mike called before the boys could leave the room, "You'll sit down with your Mom and get that project planned this Saturday."

"Yessir," Andy mumbled. "Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad."

After the boys left, Mike put his arm around his wife. "He just burns me up sometimes," Mike complained.

"He's just being a kid," she said. "All the other scout Moms have warned me about this."

Mike looked at her with interest.

"They all need a few swift kicks down the final stretch," she said.

* * *

"Uh, Katie?"

"Andy! How are you?!"

"Uh, oh, you know, fine."

"You've got something on your mind," Katie said.

"Look, Katie, my friend Darren, you know, it's Junior year and we've got Prom this year and well, Darren wants to know if you might… go with him… to Prom."

"Does Darren know he's supposed to ask me himself?"

Andy grinned. "I warned him you'd say that. Hold on." He covered the phone with his hand. "She says you have to ask her."

Darren turned red and accepted the phone from his friend. "Uh, h'lo, Katie?"

"Hi, Darren. I hear you've got something to ask me."

"Uh, yeah. Uh… would you… uh, you know… uh… go to Prom with me?"

"Let's see… when is it?"

"May 12."

"Hold on." He waited while she checked her calendar. "Okay, I should be able to do that. But Darren," she warned, "This is just as friends, you know? No romantic notions or anything."

"S-sure, Katie."

"Put Andy on."

Darren handed the phone back to Logan. "Thanks, Katie. You're the best."

"No worries. Andy?"

"Yeah?"

"Is my Dad okay?"

"Y-yeah, I think so. Why?"

"I talked to Mom the other day. She didn't say anything, you know, but I got the feeling she was… worried about him. Could you, try and find out for me?"

"Sure. And Katie?"

"Yeah, Andy?"

"I need a date, too."

"And I suppose I'm supposed to find you one?"

"I'll ask her, don't worry."

She laughed. "All right, Andy. I'll see if my friend Lisa is interested."

"Thanks, Katie."

* * *

"Detective Francine Lichter, this is Robert Goren."

Bobby reached out and shook her hand.

"You're the profiler?"

"Uh, consultant," Bobby corrected.

"Well, I hope you're as good as they say you are because this bitch has had us running in circles."

Bobby followed her into the conference room, where she had a bulletin board full of notes and evidence and a slide show presentation. Bobby felt cold fingers wrapping around his heart as he took everything in. It was exactly what he thought it would be. It was exactly _who_ he thought it would be.

"Her name is Nicole Wallace," he said, matter of fact.

* * *

"Uncle Bobby?" Andy asked.

"Andy, what's up?" Bobby sounded cheerful, in spite of everything going through his head.

"I uh… you know, I'm doing my Eagle Scout project, and well… I thought I would try to do something for the homeless."

"Andy, that's a great idea!"

"I thought maybe you could help me… get something started."

"Anything you need, son."

* * *

"He sounded fine to me, Katie. Maybe you're just… uh, you know, missing home."

"I'm glad he sounds fine. Too bad I haven't been able to catch him to hear his voice myself," she said. "And I do miss them, Andy. I miss you and your folks too, if you want to know the truth. You'll see. Before long you'll leave home, and you'll find out what it's like."

"I guess."

"Hey, Lisa said she's up for the Prom. You have to ask her out, though. I'm not doing it for you."

"Great!"

"Here's her number."

* * *

With Katie off to college, they were alone in the apartment, but still Bobby and Alex whispered their conversation in bed.

"All these years, I thought she was dead," Alex said.

"I know it's her, Alex."

"I don't doubt you, Bobby," she said. Their hands were clasped together, and she gave his a squeeze.

"I'm worried about Katie," he said, his voice hushed.

"Maybe she doesn't know."

"It's in the public record, Alex. Our marriage, Katie's birth."

"She's off at school," Alex said, trying to convince herself.

"Nicole has friends in those circles. She taught college, don't you remember?"

Alex's stomach was in a knot. "Oh, I remember," she said, her voice hushed. "Are you suggesting we tell Katie?"

Bobby was quiet a long time. "She's as good with faces as you are."

"And she's as smart as you are," Alex added, giving her consent.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Daddy?"

"Hi honey."

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah," he said with a smile. "I need to see you, though. Are you busy tonight?"

"I have class until 6, but I can meet you after."

"We'll pick you up at 6:30, take you for dinner."

"Sounds great! Love you, Daddy."

"Love you too, Katie."

* * *

Andy got home before both of his parents. He chucked his heavy bookbag on the floor beside the front door and turned on the game system to get some time in before they got home. His job in the game was to shoot the criminals without accidentally shooting any of the innocents. He was remarkably good at it. His parents had taught him to shoot, but his quick reflexes were his own.

Mike came in the door, saw his bookbag on the floor and the boy playing his game. "5 minutes, and then it's homework," Mike announced as he walked to the kitchen to prepare something for dinner.

"Okay, Dad," Andy said, taking out a few more bad guys. A few minutes later, he joined his father in the kitchen. "You're cooking?"

"Your Mom's working late," Mike said. Carolyn was in charge of CSU, and often she had to keep late hours. Mike was a private investigator and made his own hours. It was rare for him not to be able to be flexible with his schedule. Over the years, one of them had been able to be there for Andy almost all the time. Mike turned the oven on, seasoned the steaks on the pan, and turned to his son. "What's homework tonight?"

"Uh, I have to finish my geometry and then I have to work on that report for US History class. And I have to read the rest of Hamlet."

"Sounds like a lot for one night."

"Yeah."

"Get busy. I'm here if you need me, but not for Hamlet."

"Gotcha, Dad."

* * *

"Hi, honey," Alex said, giving her daughter a hug.

"Mom. Daddy," Katie said as she turned and hugged her father.

"You hungry?" Bobby asked.

"I haven't eaten since noon," she said.

"Let's go," Bobby smiled, and he and Alex escorted Katie out to the car. It had been a warm day, and the evening air felt good. Alex got behind the wheel, and Katie climbed into the back while Bobby sat in the passenger seat.

"Connecticut is nice this time of year," Alex observed.

"Yeah, it's been pretty nice weather lately."

"How are your classes going?" Alex asked as she drove them off the campus and into town.

"Good, Mom. I was worried about Psychology for a while, but I got an A on my last test."

Alex pulled into the parking lot for the little family restaurant, and they all piled out. "I love this place!" Katie squealed. "I haven't eaten here since the last time you guys came down!"

Bobby and Alex shared a smile. In a few minutes, the family was sitting comfortably in a booth inside the restaurant. Bobby had his binder out on the table.

"Are you working?" Katie asked him.

He shook his head. "Uh, in a minute," he said, holding one finger out to his daughter. The waiter came, and they all made their orders. Once they were alone again, Bobby looked to Alex for support.

"Honey, we have to tell you something."

Katie's face grew worried, and she looked back and forth between her parents, giving them her full attention.

"You know how we always told you our jobs were dangerous?"

"You're okay, right? You're not going undercover, are you?" The first question was for her Dad, the second for her Mom.

"No, honey, nothing like that," Alex said. Bobby unzipped his binder.

"One of the people…" He paused, thinking how to phrase what he had to say. "This is one of the ones that got away," he said, and showed her the last picture he had of Nicole Wallace, from 20 years prior.

Katie looked at the picture, then back up at her parents. "What did she do?"

"She's a psychopath," Bobby said. "She has murdered… a lot of people."

"She uses people," Alex added. "And then she kills them when she doesn't need them anymore."

"And she kills to get to the people she wants," Bobby added.

"I don't understand. Why are you showing me this?"

The two looked again into each others' eyes before they continued explaining to their daughter.

"She's back," Bobby said quietly.

"She's always… she and your father…" Alex wasn't sure how to describe it, really.

"Once she finds out I'm trying to catch her, she could try anything," Bobby said.

"We want you to be safe," Alex told Katie. She picked the picture up off the table and handed it to her daughter for a second look. The waiter brought their food. After he had gone, Alex spoke again. "If you see her, you have to get away from her as quickly as you can."

Katie was terrified. All her life, her parents had sheltered her from their jobs, from the horrible, dangerous people they encountered. They didn't hide the truth from her, but they didn't burden her with it, either. "But, why would she come after _me?_ She doesn't even know me!"

Bobby put his palm on his daughter's cheek. "Katie, your mother was right. She's a psychopath. She may come after you only because it will hurt your mother and me."

"Well, you're in danger, too!" She looked frantically between her parents.

Alex frowned and nodded at her little girl. "Hopefully, this is all an unnecessary precaution," Alex said. "We just had to tell you. We have to do everything we can to keep you safe."

"I brought… other pictures," Bobby said. "I'd like you to look at them all. She's older now, twenty years. She could have different hair, cosmetic surgery… I'm sorry I can't show you something more recent."

"Keep your phone charged and with you at all times," Alex said. Too bad she couldn't give her a gun. It was forbidden to have weapons on campus.

"Don't let her get close to you, or your friends. She likes to inject her victims with needles." Bobby folded his hands in front of him and watched as his daughter memorized every detail of each picture. He was relieved that she was so studious about it.

"Her name is Nicole Wallace, but it's likely she'll use an alias," Bobby said.

"She posed as a college professor once," Alex added, and Katie gave her a quick look.

Finally, Katie shoved the stack of photographs back towards her father. "She's not coming after me," she said with finality.

Bobby and Alex shared a look and nodded. "I hope you're right. I hope we're just being overprotective," Alex said.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Hey," Mike said quietly from his favorite spot on the couch.

She fell into his lap and hugged him. She followed it with a kiss. Carolyn groaned. "Long, long day," she said. "Where's Andy?"

"In his room, doing homework."

"Kind of late," Carolyn said, checking her watch.

"He was swamped with it. He took a break for dinner, and he called some girl about an hour ago, a friend of Katie's."

Carolyn raised her eyebrow at him.

"Prom," he said, and smiled. "You hungry?"

"I'm starving."

Mike kissed her cheek and got up. "Steaks, 5 minutes," he said.

"I love your steak!" She said. Carolyn was tired, but she went upstairs to say hello to her son before she settled in for the evening.

* * *

They'd discussed it all on the two hour drive back to the city. Once the Gorens got home, they quickly got ready for bed. They both had to report early to work the next morning.

Alex curled into his arms and took some comfort there. "I hated to scare her like that," she whispered.

He hated it, too. He tightened his embrace and said a quiet prayer for his baby girl.

* * *

Francine was already on the phone, tracking down even the tiniest lead. She thought him tossing out a name yesterday was ridiculous, but then she did some checking. She found out Robert Goren was the best profiler the department had ever had, and that Nicole Wallace had been his nemesis, the only one that got away. She also found out Nicole was believed to have been dead for the past 20 years, but after hearing what he had to say and reading the reports from Bobby's days in Major Case, she was convinced. The woman was alive, she was back in the city, and she was killing again.

"Good morning," Bobby said, and waited for her to get off the phone.

She hung up. "Morning, Mr. Goren," she said. She handed him a paper. "CSU report from yesterday. It came in just after you left. They pulled a partial off the victim's ID badge. I told them to run it against Wallace."

He looked up at her.

"It's a match."

Again, Bobby felt that squeeze against his heart. "I need to see the crime scene," he said quietly.

"Sure," she said, getting up and grabbing her jacket. It had been warm enough lately, but it was starting to rain periodically, and Lichter didn't want to be caught out in the rain.

* * *

The boys walked together across the front lawn of the high school and down the sidewalk towards the subway. "She said she wants to meet me," Andy was saying. "You got plans tonight?"

Darren shook his head. "Please, tell me we're going to Yale!"

"If I can get a car," Andy said.

"Yes!" Darren literally jumped for joy. "I can't wait!"

"Hey, dipshit, I don't have a car _yet_. I'll ask when I get home."

"I'm going with you," Darren said. "I'll give them puppy dog eyes. You know your Mom can never say no to my puppy dog eyes."

"Yeah, well, my Dad can. And New Haven is a long drive on the freeway. I don't know what they'll say."

"Yeah, but they loooove Katie!"

"Don't remind them of that or we'll be riding in the backseat like when we were in 4th grade."

"Oh."

"Just let me handle it, Darren."

* * *

"Step into him," Captain Alex Eames said, borrowing her favorite line from her former Captain Deakins. Her detectives nodded and hurried out of her office, eager to break the case.

She checked her phone, but she already knew Bobby hadn't called. She'd been checking it off and on all morning, hoping he would catch a lead and they'd bring Nicole in, once and for all.

She settled in to write her weekly report for the Chief when the phone finally rang, startling her. "Alex Eames," she said.

"They got a partial, confirmed it's her," Bobby reported.

"So what's next?"

"I just came out of the crime scene. She hasn't changed much, at least not her taste in partners."

"Rich, desperate, useful," Alex said.

"Exactly. The last victim was head over heels for her. The super in the building said he never saw the guy so in love." Bobby was pacing while he spoke. Alex could hear the quickness of his breath, the sounds of the city in the background. "He gave her what she wanted, and she killed him."

"What did he give her, Bobby?" Alex could tell he was upset and holding back.

"He worked for DMV. He gave her our plate numbers."

Alex, stunned, raised her hand to massage her temples. "She's stalking us, then?"

"I'd bet on it."

"Since?"

Bobby hesitated. "Last Tuesday, possibly."

"Oh my God." Alex tried to reason that no stalker would want to follow someone on a two hour drive to Connecticut, that Nicole Wallace didn't know where to find her daughter.

"You okay?" Bobby asked.

She sighed. Of course not, that's what she wanted to say to him. "Yeah."

"Watch your back, Eames."

"You too, Goren."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Logan," Carolyn said into the phone. It had been a busy morning, and she was buried under a mountain of paperwork: evidence logs, expense reports, personnel evaluations. She was happy to hear Mike's voice on the other end of the line.

"Hey."

"Hi."

"Andy's got a crazy idea."

"Oh?" She asked, skeptical.

"He wants to borrow the car and go see Katie at Yale."

"Andy? Wants to go see Katie?"

The two had grown up together. Katie was the closest thing to a sister Andy would ever have. And like most siblings, they enjoyed each other's company only to a point. Andy had been complaining about having to visit Katie for most of his teen years. He loved her, he loved to talk to her, to email. But it was completely out of character for him to want to give up an entire Friday night to visit her.

"Prom thing, I think," Mike hypothesized.

"Oh…" Carolyn was starting to piece it together, now. "And who is he planning to take with him?"

"Only Darren."

"Hmmm…"

"I told him I'd have to talk to you first."

"What do you think?

"I think it's a long drive, on a busy interstate."

"And?"

"I think he'll be safe with Katie. He can spend the night there if he has to."

"Let me talk to him."

She heard Mike hold out the phone and say, "she wants to talk to you."

"Connecticut, hey?" Carolyn asked.

"Yeah, Mom, I know it's far, but Darren will be with me and he can navigate for me and we can take the GPS and Katie will be waiting and she can drive the whole time we're there."

Carolyn smiled and almost laughed. He sounded like he was 5 years old again. "Darren's parents know about this plan?"

"He's going to ask as soon as we know if you'll loan us the car."

"Let me talk to your Dad." Again, she listened as the phone transferred hands.

"Hi."

"I guess it's okay with me as long as you put the fear of God into him about driving on the freeway. And Darren too, for that matter. And they have to head back by 10:00 or spend the night there. I don't want him falling asleep at the wheel."

"Sounds good to me," Mike said.

"All right." She listened to Andy's cheer as Mike told him yes, then waited for Mike to return his attention to her. "Mike?"

"Yeah, babe."

"I'm gonna work late again tonight. I have to get these evaluation reports in by Monday morning, or I'll be in deep shit."

"Okay. I'll call my girlfriend, have date night with her."

"Idiot. Katie's in Connecticut."

"Oh. Yeah." He smiled. "I'll be here when you get home. You want dinner?"

"I'll just have something delivered."

"Love you."

"You too. Mike, remember. Fear of God."

"I'm on it."

* * *

The boys made it to New Haven a little faster than they should have, but they pulled in safely and parked behind Katie's dorm. Darren spent a few minutes checking his hair in the rearview mirror before he climbed out.

"You all pretty, now?" Logan asked.

Darren just grinned and followed his best friend inside. Andy checked in at the front desk, and they called Katie's room for him. In a few minutes, she came down the hall, dressed in jeans and a scoop neck long sleeve t-shirt. She wore the necklace her Dad gave her for graduation, a little cross exactly like the one her Mom wore, only on a little longer chain.

Darren was speechless. He licked his lips and watched her give Andy a hug.

Then it was his turn. Katie hugged him easily, but he was as rigid as a stone. "H-hi, Katie," Darren said, and licked his lips again.

She smiled at him, then turned to Logan. "Lisa said we can just walk over and get her anytime."

The group walked together out into the night, Katie telling Andy all her best stories of college.

They did not see the woman behind the wheel of the minivan that was parked across the street.

* * *

"Oh, shit! I forgot to call Dad and tell him we're here!" Andy exclaimed, and yanked his cell phone out of his pocket.

"Andy?"

"Sorry, Dad, I forgot to call. We're okay. We're here."

"Say hi to Katie for me."

"You got it, Dad."

"Ten o'clock, don't forget."

"Yessir."

Katie's friend Lisa, as tall as Andy and dressed in a loose, knee length skirt and a tie died hippie looking blouse, walked outside and joined them on the sidewalk. Katie introduced them, and Andy shook her hand politely. She didn't seem his type, but she was pretty.

They walked another block to the coffee shop, and the boys held chairs for the girls until they sat down.

"Wow," Lisa said. "You don't get that kind of treatment every day."

Katie spoke for her friend. "Andy's Dad is as strict as mine about manners. And Darren's just a good guy, aren't you, Darren?"

He blushed, and Katie smiled.

"They have food here?" Andy asked. The boys were famished.

"Yeah, sandwiches." The group looked over the menu and placed their orders.

"Did you talk to your Dad?" Andy asked her.

"Yeah, he and Mom came down last night. It was kind of weird."

"What do you mean, weird?"

Katie glanced over at the others, not sure she wanted them to overhear. "I'll tell you later, Andy. I need to tell somebody."

He looked at her with great concern, but he didn't ask for more information.

* * *

A/N I'd love to get some reviews about now!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

As the boys gained speed on the interstate, they talked excitedly about the girls, and the plan for Prom. Suddenly, Andy smacked himself in the leg. "Ah, man!"

"What?" Darren asked.

"Katie. She was going to tell me something about her parents visiting yesterday. I forgot all about it!" A car caught up to them in the passing lane, and Andy gave it a quick glance, then checked his speed.

Darren shrugged. "Just call her tomorrow."

At that moment, the car beside them swerved right into them. Andy's arms were knocked from the steering wheel, and their car sped off the road and tumbled down an embankment.

* * *

Carolyn was dozing in Mike's arms while he watched a movie. He kissed the top of her head just before his phone rang. He picked it up off the end table.

"Hello, Mike Logan," he said. As he listened to the caller, he stiffened. Carolyn stirred. "M-my son. He borrowed the car tonight, drove to Connecticut."

Carolyn was sitting up straight, wide awake now.

"We'll get down there as quick as we can. What exit?"

His face had drained of color as he spoke to the state trooper on the phone. "The car… it rolled over."

She looked at him, terrified.

"Andy and Darren… are missing."

* * *

Alex's phone rang, and she fully expected a call from work. "Alex Eames," she said, her Captain's voice not betraying that she had been sound asleep. "Carolyn?" Alex smacked Bobby in the thigh until he sat up and listened. "Carolyn, slow down, I don't understand… Okay. Okay. Okay, bye. We'll call you later."

Horrified, she looked over at Bobby. "Andy and his friend… went to see Katie. They flipped the car. They're missing."

"Nicole," Bobby hissed.

"We don't know that. They could have been thrown… hurt."

He looked at her through pain-filled eyes. "Call Katie," he said.

* * *

"I want to see it," Carolyn insisted.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, we have to follow procedure."

"I need to see it!" She was rigid and furious.

"Look, Officer, my wife is the head of CSU in New York City. She knows how to look without compromising anything."

The man honestly looked torn. "ID?" He asked her. She jammed her hand in her purse and dug for a minute, then came out with her laminated ID card. She gave it to him. "All I can do is run it by my superiors. I'll try. I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you," Mike said. He was itching to have a look at the car, too, but he'd been off the force for a long time. Carolyn stood a much better chance of gaining access. He folded his arms across his chest and looked out at the grassy hill below him. He could see the flashlights moving back and forth as the troopers searched for the boys. As they searched for his son.

* * *

"Okay. Have you gotten any strange calls? Even hang-ups?" Bobby listened to her carefully. "You remember the pictures, Katie. You keep your eyes open." The soft tone he usually used with his daughter was gone. She picked up on it right away, and it upset her even more. Alex touched his arm. "Your Mom wants to talk to you." He passed the phone to Alex.

"Calm down, honey." She waited. "I know. We're worried, too. Look, Katie. We'll call you just as soon as we hear anything. Yeah, sweetie. I know. He's just… worried. I know. We just don't know, honey. I want you to keep your eyes open, too." Bobby tapped her on the arm and waggled his fingers to get the phone back. "Here's your Dad."

"Katie? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." Bobby listened as she spoke. "Yes, I think she had something to do with it. I think she'll use the boys to get to you. No. I don't have anything tangible. Yes. That's it. My gut." He listened to her until she finished. "I love you, Katie."

"I love you, too," Alex said, pulling the phone halfway out of his hand and then giving it back.

"Call us if you see her or if you hear anything odd. Yes. Love you. Bye."

Bobby hung up the phone and stared at his wife. "I've got to tell Logan," he said.

* * *

"Andy?" Darren was sitting beside his friend, in a very dark basement. He kept his voice at a whisper, not sure if she would be back. "Andy, can you hear me?"

Logan groaned and rolled to his side. "What the hell happened?" He asked, once he was aware enough to put the words together.

"We crashed the car. Well, she crashed into us. She said she was helping, but she didn't take us to a hospital. She threw us in her basement."

"Oh God I crashed the car… Dad's gonna kill me."

"Andy, you're not listening. She's pyscho. Instead of helping, she threw us in her basement."

He looked confused and closed his eyes. "What?"

"We've been kidnapped." Andy groaned in response, still unable to wrap his head around the concept. "Look, Andy," Darren said. "How bad are you hurt?"

"Uh…" Andy tested his limbs, slowly moving them. "I think I'm okay. Just sore." He forced himself to sit up, then had to battle back a wave of nausea.

"You're not just sore," Darren observed. "But at least nothing seems broken. You don't have a light, do you?"

Andy pressed both hands against his head as if he were trying to keep it from flying apart. "Uh, cell phone," he said. He lowered one hand and took the phone out of his pocket, handing it to his friend.

"I shoulda thought of that!" He gave Andy his phone back and retrieved his own. Then he slowly walked the perimeter of the room, shining the light carefully to try and get a sense of the place. "Hey! There's a door over here," he whispered excitedly. He tried the knob. It turned, but when he pulled on the door, it didn't budge. "Shit. Locked."

"Darren." Andy had been watching Darren's shadow move across the room. His friend walked slowly back. "What's wrong with your arm?"

Darren lifted it, then held it close to his chest again. "I think it's broken," he said. "Hurts like hell, anyway."

Andy let out a weary sigh, and squeezed his eyes shut. "We've got to get out of here."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Mike paced wearily away from the edge of the highway, towards the lights of one of the patrol cars. He had his phone to his ear. Carolyn was still waiting to be told she could look at the car. She stood at the edge of the street, arms folded, staring down the embankment.

"Yeah," Mike said.

"Have they found the boys yet?" Bobby asked.

"No. It doesn't look like they're down there. Maybe it's just so damn dark…"

"Mike, I have to tell you something." He paused, and then continued. "Last week, I was called in to consult on a case. It's Nicole Wallace. She's alive, Mike. And she's in the area. And I think she's behind this."

Mike's jaw set angrily and he scrubbed his hand through his hair. "You got anything solid?"

"No, but my gut's telling me…"

"Call me back when you have something solid. I can't deal with this right now." Angrily, Logan hung up the phone.

* * *

Bobby was already dressed, and sat down to put on his shoes. Alex came out of the bedroom. She was dressed too. "Well?" She asked him.

Bobby shook his head. "He… hung up on me. I shouldn't have said anything."

"You had to tell him, Bobby."

"I don't have any evidence, just a gut feeling, and he… he can't handle it right now. That's what he said."

"They haven't found the boys?" There was no hope in the question.

Bobby shook his head and stood up. "I'm going in. Get Lichter on the case."

"I'm going to New Haven," Alex told him, and he nodded approvingly. They fell into each other's arms.

* * *

The sun was rising, and still there was no sign of the boys. Darren's parents had arrived, too, and they stood silently by the Logans as they watched the police slowly put an end to their search and rescue operation.

Carolyn was torn with worry, but she was also pissed. Mike could read it in every fiber of her being. They had held firm to protocol, and hadn't let her see the car. Now, as it was hooked to the tow truck, she was inspecting it from a distance. He took her lead and did the same.

"The driver's side door," Carolyn said, and glanced over at her husband.

He nodded, not taking his eyes off it. His mind played back what Goren had said. What if his son had been forced off the road? It would provide an explanation for where they could be now. But why Andy? Mike had never worked on any of the Nicole Wallace cases.

He looked at his wife. He would have to tell her. And he would have to call Goren back.

* * *

Andy had fallen asleep, but Darren had managed to stay awake all night. The morning sun was peeking in through the painted over windows, giving the room an eerie light. Darren straightened up, stretching his back, and got to his feet. He walked around the room, looking for anything he might have missed in the darkness of the night.

They were in a bedroom, stripped of furniture. There were two windows, both painted over in bold strokes from a brush. There were a couple of clear streaks where the painter had done a sloppy job. This was where the light was coming in. The outside wall was cool and damp from the moisture in the ground outside. The inside walls were sturdy and warm.

Darren looked down at his friend. He couldn't see any blood, besides the scrapes on his face from the broken glass of the accident. He looked down at his own arm. It was swollen, black and blue. He cradled it with his other arm and thought long and hard.

The phones had made good flashlights last night, but they couldn't get a clear signal in the basement. He'd tried calling 911, everybody, but none of the calls went through. He pulled his phone out and watched it carefully as he walked slowly around the room. No signal. They were too insulated down here.

He sank to the floor beside Andy, his back against the cold outer wall. On a whim, he gently held his arm up against the cool plaster. The throbbing wouldn't stop. "Andy," he said quietly.

Andy woke up quickly, remembering their situation. "She back?" He asked.

"No. I haven't heard any movement upstairs for hours. I think she's gone."

Andy studied the room in the light, then saw Darren's arm. "Holy hell, Darren!"

Darren ignored his friend's outburst.

"We have to get out of here." Andy got to his feet a little too quickly. He waited while the room swayed around him.

"How's your head?"

"Not so good."

"Maybe we can get the window open." He stretched and reached for it, but he couldn't quite get it. This was one deep basement. "Darren, move over," he ordered. He waited until his friend was out of the way, then took a running jump, catching the sill with his fingers. He held himself for a moment, then dropped back to his feet, and dizzy from the effort, fell to the floor. Andy wrapped his hands around his head and waited it out.

"I guess that's not gonna work," Darren said sarcastically, then added, "Dipshit."

"Touche," Andy groaned from beneath his hands.

* * *

She watched and frowned when she saw the small woman climb out of the car and enter the dorm. That was not the person she was hoping for.

* * *

Goren's phone rang. "Goren," he said.

"We didn't get a close look, but I think the car was rammed, forced off the road."

Bobby stiffened. "The boys?"

"Still no sign of them."

Bobby looked out the window of Lichter's squad room. It was full daylight now. "Mike, I'm with Detective Lichter. We're working the case."

"Bobby, you gotta get a look at my car."

"We'll be there soon," he said. "Is Carolyn...?"

"I made her take a sleeping pill. We're helpless here, Bobby."

"Alex is down there, with Katie, if you need her. I'll be there soon."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Lichter and Goren inspected the car carefully. To his relief, the blood found in the car was minor, and probably related to the shattering glass windows. He focused his attention on the driver's side of the car. On his 4th run from the back end to the front, he found what he was looking for, called a technician over, and asked for a sample of the paint.

* * *

It had been a tearful morning with Katie. She was terribly upset about Andy and Darren, and was blaming herself for letting them go, for not noticing anything suspicious. Alex had done a lot of talking, and finally her daughter was coming back to herself.

"I… I have class soon," Katie said.

Alex didn't ask her if she thought she could handle it. She knew her daughter, and she knew she would go unless someone told her not to. Right now, Alex thought the distraction might do her some good.

"Will you… will you stay here?" Katie asked her mother.

Alex nodded. "I'll walk with you," she said.

And while Katie was in the shower, Alex stared out the window. She saw the minivan pull slowly away, caught the glimpse of that blond hair. She memorized the plate number and texted it to Bobby.

* * *

Even with the help of the pill, Carolyn only slept a few hours. She awoke in the hotel room with her husband asleep by her side, still in his clothes. Carolyn slipped out of the bed and checked both her and Mike's cell phone. Her only message was from work. She texted them back; she was in no mood to talk to anyone.

She was still in her clothes, too. They hadn't taken time to pack anything. She went into the bathroom and found a miniature coffee machine. She started it brewing and came back out to find he was sitting up in bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Mike never slept soundly when something was on his mind. He looked over at her.

"No news is good news," was all she could think to say.

Mike held out his arms and she willingly joined him, allowing him to wrap them around her. He kissed her hair. "Goren thinks… he thinks this was done by a person from his past."

She looked up at him.

"A woman named Nicole Wallace. A psychopath. He never could catch her. They thought she was dead all this time, but he just got a consulting job and he… he thinks it's her. And now this happened."

"But why Andy?"

"I don't know." They sat in silence a few minutes and Mike spoke again. "Goren's here. They're checking into it."

"The car?"

Mike nodded. "He's inspecting the car."

* * *

The information from the plate number Alex gave him was a dead end. The color didn't match the paint on Mike's car. He filed away the registered name, just in case she would use it as an alias.

He pulled out his phone and called Mike. Carolyn was the first to grab it off the table. "Carolyn Logan," she said.

"Hi uh, Carolyn, it's me."

"Did you find something, Bobby?"

"You were right about the car. It was forced off the road by a white Toyota."

Carolyn's emotions got the best of her and Mike quickly got up and drew her into his arms. She kept the phone to her ear.

"I don't have to tell you… we haven't heard anything. We haven't found them. They're alive, Carolyn. You know that."

Tears fell and she nodded as Mike eased the phone away from her. "Bobby," Mike said.

"Mike."

"You got something?" Bobby repeated what he'd just told Carolyn. "Mike, I'm on this. I'll catch her. I swear to God I'll catch her."

"Yeah. Okay. Thanks, Bobby." He hung up the phone and held his wife.

"He says they're alive."

"No ransom call yet. No trace."

"Do you think so, Mike? Do you really think so?"

He nodded fiercely and his eyes filled with tears. "He's alive," Mike said.

* * *

It was one in the afternoon when Robert Goren walked into Katie's dorm. He barely had time to greet his wife and daughter when Katie's phone rang. She showed her phone to her father. It read "UNAVAILABLE."

Bobby answered. "Katie's phone," he said.

"Now that's a voice I haven't heard in a long, long time," Nicole said with delight.

Bobby gave a signal to his wife, who quietly called Lichter on her own phone. "Nicole. Back from the dead?"

"Oh, Bobby. Were you still in mourning?"

"What do you want, Nicole?"

She clicked her tongue against her cheek a few times. "Oh, Bobby. You know what I want, what I've always wanted."

"Love."

His response angered her and she snapped, "I've never wanted for love."

"For true love, you have, Nicole."

Her voice softened and she decided to turn his comment to her advantage. "Perhaps you're the one to show me…"

"Where are the boys?"

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about."

"If you hurt them, Nicole, you'll never learn about love from me."

Alex ignored it, but Katie's head snapped up in alarm.

"Perhaps if you meet me, I might remember something… useful."

"Fine. Where?"

"I'll call again."

The call ended, and Bobby angrily closed his daughter's phone. "They're working on tracing it," Alex said.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, Kate?" he turned to her.

"What did you mean, she'll never learn about love from you?"

Bobby shared a look with Alex. "Your mother… she thinks this woman's… infatuation… with me is why she keeps coming back."

"She's in love with you?"

"She's a psychopath," Alex reminded Katie.

"She doesn't know what love is," Bobby said.

"And she wants… you… to show her, Daddy?"

Bobby looked his daughter in the eye. At times like this, he wished she weren't so damned smart. He nodded. "It's a… a game. If she can get me to… to…"

"To love her," Katie encouraged him.

"Then she wins."

Katie chuckled. "But you love Mom! Doesn't she know that?!"

Alex searched Bobby's eyes, and knew he needed her help. "Honey, why don't you go downstairs and call Lichter? I need to talk to Katie."

A fleeting, terrified look passed between them. Just as quickly, Bobby realized Alex was right. He nodded and walked out of the room.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Mom, you can't tell me Daddy's in love with her. I'll never believe that."

"It's interesting your Dad used the word 'infatuation,'" Alex mused.

"I don't believe this. Daddy loves you, Mom. He's only ever loved you. Anybody, everybody can see that!"

"Honey, sit down." Alex sat on Katie's bed, and Katie sat beside her. "You know, in our business, we have to deal with a lot of different kinds of people." She checked, and her daughter was listening. "Your father is one of the best interrogators I've ever seen." Katie nodded. This was old news to her. "Nicole was the most interesting person he ever interrogated."

"What do you mean, interesting?"

"Fascinating. He was mesmerized by her."

Katie shook her head. "But Daddy is in love with you!"

Alex nodded. "Nicole is the most interesting woman he's ever known."

"But you-"

"I'm the most honest. Steadfast." Alex stopped, and let this sink in with her daughter. "And you're right, he loves me. Nothing will change that. But this woman has a way with him… a way of getting inside his head, of twisting his heart around. And he was telling you the truth, that it's a game. It's like that for him, too." Alex rubbed her palms against her legs. "In all those years, all those interrogations, the best he ever managed was a stalemate."

Katie looked up in alarm. She had never known her father hadn't succeeded in the interrogation room. All the stories she'd ever heard were singing his praises.

"Mom, he won't go… meet her, will he?"

Alex nodded. "If he has to. If that's the only way to find Andy and Darren." She looked at her daughter's expression. If the child had been frightened when she first learned about Nicole, she was terrified now. Alex reached out and took her daughter's hand.

* * *

The call had come in the middle of the night, strategic move on Nicole's part. She disrupted their sleep, knowing Bobby would never be able to rest afterward, hoping it would throw him off his game.

The call from Mike had been difficult, and Bobby only told him they were hoping to know something by evening.

Now he dressed carefully, his mind roving over every important relationship in his life and how she could so easily destroy all of it. He was relieved when Alex came in and put her arm around him, leaning her head against his chest.

No words passed between them, and yet he felt as if he'd just bared his heart to her. And she had given him nothing but encouragement. He felt stronger, now. More capable.

* * *

Bobby sat restlessly, taking in every motion, every movement in the darkness of the bar. When he turned his head to watch a young man take a break shot at the pool table, he heard her voice behind him, sending chills shooting up his spine.

"Bobby."

He spun around too quickly, then calmed himself. He put on his best poker face.

The corner of her mouth turned up in a smile. "You've aged well. Distinguished."

"The boys, Nicole."

"I told you I don't know anything about that." She sank into the seat opposite him.

He shook his head and bit back his anger. He couldn't let her get to him. Bobby raised his eyes and examined her face. "You've aged well, too. Rough around the edges, maybe, but still quite pretty."

"Oh, a compliment." Selective hearing was a wonderful thing. She ordered a drink from the waitress and folded her hands in front of her, her eyes as youthful as ever.

"How did you pull it off, Nicole? And where have you been hiding?"

"What, the heart, you mean?"

Bobby cocked his head and waited for her to explain.

"Declan was desperate for love like everyone else. After a good romp, he was easy to convince. All it took was a boyfriend in the coroner's office to replace the DNA report with a true one of mine. They were all so distracted by your state of mind, Bobby. Nobody thought to look more closely."

He nodded slowly and then stared at a pine knot on the wall. "And then you disappeared."

She smiled again. "I had a wonderful excursion, darling." She straightened the rings on her fingers. "I traveled the world, made a comfortable living." She leaned in closer to him and brushed her fingers against his. "I have quite a collection of toys, Bobby."

He pulled his hands back. "Why here, why now? It sounds like you moved on with your life."

She shook her head. "You must understand, Bobby, my obsession. With the one that got away." Her eyes met his, and she saw he _did_ understand.

Her next comments were like icicles cutting through his heart. "I knew you'd married her. I saw your little girl, once, at the park, on her tricycle. I thought about taking her, but… would you believe I didn't want to hurt you?"

"Yeah, sure. I believe that," he said, and on the last word made eye contact.

"And you thought of me, too." She said it knowingly, and he bristled.

"When I had time," he said. It was true, in a way.

Her drink arrived and she raised it in a toast. "To a new beginning. To us."

She sipped her drink. Bobby swallowed his own spit.

* * *

Andy had finally stopped feeling dizzy every time he stood. He decided to give it another shot. He ran, jumped, and caught himself on the windowsill. He hung there long enough to get a signal on his phone. He dialed 911, and left the phone on the sill before he fell to the floor, exhausted.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

She rose to leave, and Bobby quickly grabbed her hand. "The boys," he hissed at her.

She tilted her head.

"Tit for tat, Nicole. Your turn."

She gave him a smile and pretended there was affection in the way he held her hand. "I may have seen some writing on the bathroom wall. Good night, Bobby. I can't wait for our next encounter." She kissed the air and he let her go.

Bobby hurried to the women's restroom. He knocked and entered, then searched the cubicles surrounding every toilet. In the last stall, she had written boldly:

"210 Amore." And she'd drawn a picture of a heart.

Bobby dialed his phone.

* * *

The Logans were at the hospital, exuberant from the relief that their son was all right. Andy was happy, too. His face was scarred from the glass, and he had an IV in his arm, but he was with his family and a bowl of soup was on the way. He smiled and let his parents pet him.

Alex and Katie arrived. Katie gave Andy a fierce hug, and then hugged Mike and Carolyn. Alex greeted them all in much the same way.

When Bobby arrived a few minutes later, Andy was already digging into his bowl of soup. Bobby just smiled at the boy, and gave his shin a squeeze. He patted Carolyn on the arm and nodded at Mike.

"You must be hungry," Bobby said.

"I haven't eaten," he said between bites, "since Friday night."

"Your captor, didn't…"

"She locked us in a room and left."

"He already talked to the local PD," Mike said.

"Did you see her?" Bobby asked.

"No, but Darren did."

He gave the boy's shin another squeeze and left the room. Katie followed him.

Down the hall, he found Darren with his parents in a very similar situation. Bobby hesitated in the doorway, but Darren saw Katie and perked up. "Katie!" He said happily.

She came in, bent over, and kissed his cheek. "I'm so glad you're all right, Darren!" Introductions were the next order of business.

"Darren," Bobby said quietly, "Andy said you saw the woman who kidnapped you."

"Yeah, I helped her drag Andy up the hill and put him in her car. Then she made me carry him down the stairs into her basement, into that room."

Bobby opened his binder and removed a picture of Nicole, taken by stealth when she met him at the bar. "Is this her?" He asked.

Darren's face paled with recognition. "Th-that's her," he said.

Bobby quickly put the photograph away. "Thank you, Darren." Bobby went to stand by the door until Katie was ready to leave him. He needed a moment to himself, anyway. In the rush to find the boys, he hadn't had a chance to let down after his meeting with Nicole.

* * *

"I want to help," Mike said quietly, as he paced the hall with Bobby. Goren's energy was up; he'd been wired for hours.

"It's not that simple, Bobby said. I'm just a consultant."

"I'm a PI, they could use me."

"All I can do is put in a good word. Detective Lichter would have to decide."

"I'll do it free of charge."

"I'll tell her, but Mike… she knows about Andy. She's not likely to want you involved; you're too close."

"She knows you're worried about Katie and she hasn't fired you yet."

Bobby stopped and turned to his friend. "Look, I'll tell her. After that…" he raised his hands in the air, then resumed pacing. At the nurse's station, Bobby stopped and turned back to Mike. When Mike was closer, he said. "How is he, really?"

Mike wiped his hand over his hair. "He's all right. They said he probably had a concussion, but that was already healing. They're just keeping him tonight to rehydrate him."

Bobby clapped Mike's arm, then dropped his hand to his side. "I'm sorry, Mike. I was so worried about Katie that I didn't even think-"

"Oh, shut up, Goren. You're not a…" Mike glanced quickly around him and lowered his voice, "fucking psychic. I don't expect you to know what that psychopathic bitch had planned." He jammed his hands into his pockets. "The kids are all right. That's all that matters."

* * *

The Gorens had a hotel room, and though Katie's college home was less than two miles away, she joined her parents for the night. Bobby was still restless. He paced until Alex made him stop, then he flopped on the bed and flipped channels with the remote in an endless circle, never stopping for more than 30 seconds on any one show.

"Daddy," Katie said, and Alex lifted the remote from his hand. "I don't want you to be upset. Everything's okay now."

He rested his hand in her hair for a moment, then stood and went out onto the tiny balcony for some air.

"He just needs some time, honey," Alex said. "And some space." Alex handed her the remote, and after a few more glances in her father's direction, she found a documentary that was interesting and became engrossed.

Katie was in a sound sleep when she heard the balcony door open again. She sat up quickly, and saw her father outside again, staring into the clouds that were blowing in. She knew something was wrong.

Katie slipped out of bed and slid the door open behind him, stepping out into the windy night.

"Did I wake you?" He asked.

She nodded, holding her arms to stay warm.

"It's cold. We can go in."

"No, it's okay," she said. "I kind of like storms." As they stood in the whispy breeze, with the heat lightning strobing in the clouds, his thoughts carried him far away from her.

No one but Bobby would ever know the dream that woke him, that frightened him enough he had to get away from the woman he loved.

_It was Nicole. He had her pinned against the wall, his mouth roaming against her long neck as he moved slowly inside her, their breath coming in heavy gasps and moans of pleasure. His hands wandered up, lifted her breasts until they fell from his grip, then as his mouth devoured hers his hands cupped her soft neck. He broke the kiss, heard her whisper his name, and snapped her neck in one swift motion._

"Daddy?" Katie said, her hand gentle on his arm.

He turned to her, and for a moment, she saw the dismay in his eyes. Katie didn't know what to say. She'd never seen him like this. "I love you," she blurted.

It seemed to work. In the same way she'd managed it as a child, she rooted him in the present time and place. Bobby pulled her into a hug. "I love you too, baby girl," he said. He rubbed his hands up and down her arms. "You're cold. We'll go inside." Quietly, the two came back into the room and climbed back into their beds.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

It took some convincing, but finally Mike and Carolyn left Andy in the care of the hospital staff and went back to the hotel. They undressed and dropped into the bed together, exhausted.

"Thank God he's all right," Carolyn said.

"Amen to that," Mike agreed.

"Did he tell you what happened?" she asked. "She sideswiped them on the freeway."

"She told Darren she was going to help them, he helped get Andy up to her car, then she pulled a gun on him and made him carry Andy to the basement."

"With his arm like it was," Carolyn said, shaking his head.

"Darren's officially adopted," Mike announced.

Carolyn slipped her hand into his. "Andy called 911," she said. "He had to climb the wall to get a signal."

"There's a service project for you—save your best friend from a psycho kidnapper. He should get honorary Eagle Scout, him and Darren both!"

They turned together and embraced. Mike kissed her, and before he fell asleep, he muttered, "Thank God."

* * *

Andy wandered down the hall, pushing his wheeled IV pole along with him. He found Darren's room and entered. One wheel on the pole kept getting stuck, and it made an annoying screeching sound.

Darren was asleep, but the sound of the errant wheel woke him.

"Hey," Andy said, sitting down in a chair next to his friend.

"Hey."

"What'd they say about you?" he asked.

Darren lifted his wrapped arm slightly before laying it back down on his chest. "Broken. And it already started healing, so they have to break it again to set it."

"Aw, God, Darren, I'm sorry."

Darren grinned. "I don't mind. They gave me pain killers."

Andy shared a laugh with him. "Hey, Darren."

"Yeah?"

"My Dad told me… how you… carried me. Thanks."

* * *

Katie wanted to see the boys again before she went back to school, and her life. The Gorens arrived at the hospital together, and gathered in Andy's room.

He was dressed and waiting to go home, decked out in new jeans and a Yale t-shirt. The IV was gone, and he was sitting in the chair leaving his guests to either stand or lean against the wall.

"You look better," Katie said, and he grinned.

Mike watched the two kids he loved most in the world as they spoke. Then his eyes fell on his wife, who was watchful, but otherwise herself again. He looked over at Alex, and saw the quiet support she always gave the people she loved. When he looked at Bobby, he grew concerned. The man had aged a week overnight.

Mike stopped leaning against the wall and walked over to Bobby. He jerked his head in the direction of the hallway, mumbling "hey."

Bobby followed him out and walked with him down the hall.

"Anything new?" he asked his friend.

Bobby shook his head. "No. Why?"

"You look… I just thought maybe…"

Again, Bobby shook his head. "No, I just couldn't sleep."

Mike nodded and walked back with Goren. "I'm going to stay home with Andy today," he said. "Unless… Lichter needs my help."

Bobby nodded his understanding as they walked in to find Carolyn signing Andy's discharge paperwork. The boy was already on his feet, ready to go. They shared hugs all around, and then the group walked down to Darren's room.

Darren was asleep, and his parents didn't want to disturb him. They gave Andy hugs and shared their well wishes with everyone else. Katie asked them to tell Darren she had come to see him, and they promised they would.

It wasn't long before Bobby was at Katie's dorm, dropping both her and her mother off. He parked the car and got out, wanting one more hug from his daughter before he lost himself in his work.

"Be careful, Daddy," Katie said, her arms tight around his chest.

Speechless, he tightened his arms, hoping she knew how much he loved her. Finally they separated, and Bobby hastily retrieved the photograph from his binder in the car. "Uhm… this is her… yesterday. You'll keep your eyes out, huh?" He asked, handing the picture to his daughter.

She studied it carefully. "Yes, Daddy."

She turned to Alex, who was moving towards Bobby. "I'll come up in a minute," Alex told her little girl. Katie went inside, but watched her parents through the window. They embraced, then kissed. Alex put her hand on his cheek and spoke. He kissed her again. Katie watched as they reluctantly pulled away from each other. Her Dad got into the car and drove away.

She looked down at the picture in her hand, then up at her mother, who was just walking in. "You can't come between them," she said to the woman in the picture.

* * *

Hours later, in psychology class, her professor handed out an outline of the case studies he wanted the students to complete. Katie examined it carefully, then waited while the other students left the room.

"Professor Harbough?" She said sweetly. "I wanted to talk to you about this assignment."

"Yes, Miss Goren?"

"You know my parents have been career police officers."

"No, I didn't know that."

"My father is a profiler." The professor looked at her with interest. "I was wondering, do I have to use the case study you gave us, or can I research one of my own?"

He tapped the outline she was holding. "As long as you cover all the topics in there, you can study whomever you choose."

She smiled. "Thank you, Professor."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Katie Goren had grown up around cops. She knew a lot of them. She knew a lot of accomplished detectives. She wasn't sure her parents would want her to study Nicole Wallace. So she turned to another source: Fin Tutuola.

Fin had worked with her Dad in narcotics, and though they weren't in constant contact, she had seen enough of him to know he was a friend. She dialed the number.

"Tutuola."

"Detective Tutuola, this is Katie Goren."

"Katie Goren," he said, a smile on his lips. He tried to remember how old she was now. "How are you, girl?"

"I'm fine. Uhm, Detective Fin, I was wondering if you could help me with something."

"That depends. Is it something that will get you… or me… in trouble?"

She laughed. "No, no. Just a project for school. My psychology professor wants us to do a case study, and I wanted you to pull some files for me."

"Professor?" Again he tried to remember how old she was.

"Yeah, Professor Harbough. At Yale."

Suddenly, Fin felt very, very old. "Oh, yeah, Yale. Of course."

"So can you help me?"

"Why don't you just ask your Mom to do it?"

"Oh, she's really busy right now. You know, Captains have all that extra paperwork."

"All right Katie, what files do you want?"

"Everything you can find on Nicole Wallace. Mom and Daddy investigated her a few times when they were in Major Case."

Fin had a funny feeling about this. "Are you sure your Dad's okay with this?"

"Detective Fin! I'm in college now. I'm not a baby anymore!"

He paused and gave it some thought. "All right."

"Great! I'll drive up tomorrow and pick them up."

* * *

Bobby and Francine had traced Nicole as far as New Jersey, but then the trail went cold. She had slipped away again. She met with her Captain, who then invited him in. Bobby shook the man's hand.

"Mr. Goren, we appreciate your input on this, but it looks like things have slowed down. We'll give you a call if things heat up again."

Disappointed, Bobby shook their hands. It was strange to work a case and have to leave it in the hands of someone else when the creek went dry. It had been three days since Andy left the hospital, and Nicole had disappeared without a trace.

He left the station, the knot still sitting in his stomach. She was out there. She was embarking on a new campaign for _him._ His mind reeled, wondering what her next move might be.

Katie was coming home for the weekend. At least he would know she was safe.

* * *

"Girl, look at you… all grown up." Fin stood back and admired her, noticing how some things about her: her eyes, her curly hair, the dimple in her cheek had never changed.

She gave him a hug. "Hello, Detective Fin."

"Katie, just Fin, please." He motioned to a chair by his desk and she sat down. "Coffee?"

"No thanks."

"How's your Dad?"

"Oh, you know, he's fine. He retired, you know, and he's trying to work as a consultant now."

"I'd heard that."

"I think he's having a hard time changing gears."

"Yeah, this is a hard job to retire from. And your Mom?"

"Great, she's really happy being a Captain."

"She's not going to retire then?"

"Not for a while yet."

"And you're at Yale. Wow."

She smiled proudly. "I'm trying to work hard, earn that scholarship money they gave me."

"Good for you."

"How are you?" She asked politely.

"I'm fine. I'm just working, waiting for my chance to retire."

She giggled. "Somehow I can't picture you retired."

"I'm going to move onto a cruise liner, and sail the world," he joked. "I got that information you wanted," he said, seriously. "It's an awful lot of material."

She perked up. "That's okay, that's good. Uhm, that's why I picked her, so I'd have lots of information for my report," she lied.

"You'll need help taking it to the car," he said, and handed her a banker's box. Fin picked up another, heavier one off the floor. "Lead the way," he said.

* * *

It wasn't often Katie used her car. It was an old Nova that her Dad had got her and Lewis had fixed up. All her life, she'd loved to be around Lewis and her Dad and old cars. It was a fine day when they gave her the Nova. The fact was, she just didn't need it when she was home, and at school she usually didn't stray too far from campus. So it was nice to have the chance to drive it, let it flex its muscles a little.

She parked on the street behind the apartment and locked the doors. Nicole's whole life was tucked away safely in her trunk. She couldn't risk studying the information at home; she'd have to wait until she went back to school.

After greeting her parents, she dropped her bag in her old bedroom. It was comfortable to her, but now when she slept here it felt a little foreign, too. Katie supposed that was part of growing up. Katie heard the doorbell and went out to see who it was.

The Logans shared happy greetings, and Katie gave Andy a hug. Almost immediately, she invited him back to the privacy of her room. "Are you okay?" she asked him. She saw that the scars on his face were mostly gone.

He grinned. "Yeah, I'm fine. Darren's arm is going to take a while to heal, but he's okay too."

Katie sat on the bed, and Andy sat down beside her. "I've decided something, Andy."

"What?"

"I'm going to help them… catch her."

"Her, who? _HER?!" _He jumped to his feet and tried very hard to keep from raising his voice. "Katie, my Dad told me about her. She's a killer. Even your Dad has never been able to catch her."

"Oh, my parents caught her, lots of times."

"But she always got away."

"She's smart. She knew how to cover her tracks, how to play the system."

He shook his head, worry written all over his face.

"Andy." She waited until he looked her in the eye. "I'm smart too."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

When Alex awoke, she was alone. She felt the mattress on his side, and it was cold. Alex sighed and stood. She stretched and started her morning routine. She no longer had to look for him; when he hadn't come to bed, he could always be found in his study.

She set up the coffee and started the machine. Then, out of concern more than curiosity, she opened the door to the study and peeked inside.

He was asleep on his arms on the desk, hunched over like a school child. Alex's face turned with a frown. She knew it was better to let him sleep, no matter how uncomfortable he looked. When something or someone woke Bobby, it usually took him a long time to fall asleep again.

Quietly, she shut the door and went out for her morning run.

* * *

Katie got up and poured herself a cup of coffee. She knew her mother would be out running, and she assumed her father was still in bed. She cooked them a breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage and then went to wake her Dad before it all got cold.

Not finding him in his room, she went straight to the study. As the door quietly swung open, she saw familiar pictures tacked up on the wall, along with notes and clippings. She looked carefully at the things he'd hung up and realized everything she was looking at was also in the trunk of her car. Her Dad had kept his own personal Nicole Wallace file.

"Daddy?" She said finally.

Startled, he reached for his weapon, which of course wasn't on his hip. At the same moment his fingers met his pajama pants, he became fully oriented to his surroundings. He blinked and rubbed his eyes, trying to shake off the remnants of that damn dream. "You scared me," he mumbled.

Katie smiled, and her dimple appeared. "Sorry, Daddy."

Bobby took a deep breath and got to his feet. He met Katie in the doorway and gave her an affectionate hug and kiss.

"I made breakfast," she said.

Bobby smiled and followed her out the door.

* * *

Katie met Andy and Darren for lunch at the diner. Darren's arm was in a bright new cast, and he was wearing a sling. She gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and he blushed.

They all sat down and studied the menus in front of them. "Ever since that one day when we had no food, I've been starved," Andy said. "It's like I have to load up at every meal, just in case I don't get my next one."

Darren grunted in agreement, and Katie put her arm on Andy's shoulder. "Lunch is on me," she said. "Mom gave me the money to take you guys out."

After they ordered, Andy looked over at her. "Look, Katie, I've been thinking about what you said last night. I guess it won't hurt for you to, you know, do research. But I want you to promise me something."

"What?"

"If you're even thinking about doing something where you might… come in contact with her, I want you to call me first."

She contemplated his proposal, and for a moment was the spitting image of her father.

"Just for safety's sake. Somebody needs to know where you are, in case…"

She nodded. "All right. But you can't tell anyone unless it's an emergency."

"All right."

"What are you two talking about?" Darren asked, and the other two told him all the details.

* * *

After a relaxing weekend with her family, Katie thought long and hard as she drove the Nova down the interstate back to Connecticut. Her father was officially off the case, and yet he was still obsessed with it. He had slept at the desk in the study all weekend, and she had seen what an effort it had been for him to attend to conversations with her and her mother.

Her Daddy was brilliant, but he had never been able to beat this woman. That alone was a thought worth ruminating on.

Katie knew the files she had would contain police reports, evidence reports, photographs, and her father's own investigation reports. By the time she reached Yale, she had decided she would save her father's reports for last. If he missed something, she didn't want his opinions and insights to skew her own.

She made three trips to her room, one for her overnight bag and one for each box. After closing herself in for the night, Katie opened the box containing the oldest file and carefully sorted out the material inside.

"Elizabeth Hitchins, Oxford…Hudson University…American Studies…" Katie mumbled to herself as she read. She rarely took notes. Her memory was powerfully strong, and she reserved note-taking for writing down her own thoughts as she processed information.

In the margin of her crisp new notepad, she wrote "The descent into madness is usually preceded by obsession." Katie stuck the cap of her pen in her mouth and studied that note. It was something she'd heard in one of her AP classes in high school… American Lit.

* * *

Bobby was in the study again. Alex slowly pushed open the door and walked in. He was pouring over the most recent file, the one he'd copied while working with Lichter. Bobby's left hand was curled over the paper, and he wrote fast and sloppy notes.

Alex moved behind him and dropped her hands into his hair, slowly smoothing them down and onto his neck and shoulders.

"In… in a minute, Alex," he said, and finished scrawling his thoughts.

She left her hands on his shoulders, but did not move them until he was finished writing. Then she leaned down and kissed his cheek. "Are you getting anywhere?" She asked quietly.

"I'm just… I have to go back through it… I'm just making notes, drawing out different pieces, hoping something will click."

"Maybe you need a break from it."

He turned suddenly and looked at her. "Nicole won't be taking a break."

Alex saw the fiery determination in his eyes, and felt a nagging in her heart that she hadn't felt in twenty years.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"Damn it, Bobby! You're letting her do it to you again!"

"I'm not… letting her… do anything! She had Andy, Alex! She could have had Katie! She could have killed our daughter!"

"She could have killed her 16 years ago, when she saw her on her tricycle." It was horrible to say it, but it was painfully true. They were in no more danger today than they had been every day of their life together.

Bobby glared at his wife.

"Bobby," Alex said, purposely softening her voice. "Every time… every time she does _this_ to you… she wins."

"She hasn't won!" He shouted, and paced to the other end of the room. His mind was bombarded by images from his dream, images of sweat and sex. "She hasn't!" His emotions almost got the best of him, and he gulped them back and buried them deep.

Alex closed her lips tight. She folded her arms. "Nicole is a master at destroying lives, Bobby. Sometimes she murders. But sometimes, she takes a life away by leaving a beating heart in an empty shell. If you let her take you away," Alex gestured to the rest of the apartment on the other side of the study wall, "from _us_, she's won."

He stood in silence and refused to look at her. In frustration, Alex dropped her hands with a smack on her legs and stomped out of the room.

* * *

Alex spent the evening running the necessary errands. She picked up the dry cleaning, did the grocery shopping. All the while, her mind was racing. Mostly, she was angry with herself. After all, they'd been married 20 years, friends 10 years more. How could she be so upset, when he was only doing what was in his nature to do?

And he was right to be worried about Katie, to want to protect her. That was his job as a father, as a parent, and he'd always done it well. How could she have reprimanded him for loving their daughter?

With a sigh, she turned the key in the lock and gathered up a handful of bags. She brought them inside and went back for the rest, then closed the door and walked to the kitchen to put things away. Turning, she could see the study was locked. He was either gone or in bed.

As she began to put the groceries away, she noticed the bottle was moved to the front of the cabinet. His sleeping pills. As much as he despised them, he'd taken one. Somehow, the knowledge both relieved her and made her heart ache for him even more.

She moved quietly into the bedroom and took off her clothes. Bobby was very still in bed, and his breath was steady. She slipped into bed beside him and put her hand on his arm. Alex kissed his temple and lay down with him.

His arm was around her. "Sorry," he whispered.

"I'm sorry, too," she replied, as tears welled up in her eyes. Slowly, they moved into a firm embrace.

Bobby was comforted to have her in his arms again. He had learned at least one thing in the last twenty years: sometimes, he needed to listen to his wife.

* * *

"He's got enough to worry about," Carolyn said. "You should know that, you're the one who always has to help him with his homework."

"I don't help that much. He just needs a reminder now and then."

"And with the Eagle Scout project coming up…"

"But Carolyn, this isn't a small thing. His life may depend on it."

"That's exactly why I don't think we should do this. He's 17, Mike. We lay this on him and he'll be terrified, waiting for her to attack, when he should be worrying about scouts and school and prom. Let him be a kid. Let him just be happy."

"But Carolyn, she could be stalking him."

"Darren knows what she looks like, and I'll bet he can't forget."

Mike nodded soberly. "He is just a kid, isn't he?" He said, looking at the family picture on the nightstand. His son always seemed so young when Mike saw him in pictures, and so grown in real life.

"If Goren tells us we need to worry, then we'll talk to Andy."

Mike nodded against her shoulder and closed his eyes to go to sleep.

* * *

"Are you okay?"

Bobby was panting, sweat beaded up on his forehead. The turmoil on his face was apparent, but his eyes were still distant, like he was still trapped in the dream.

"Bobby?"

Abruptly, he pushed himself away from her and stumbled out of bed. Alex rose to her knees. "Bobby, are you all right?" she repeated.

He rested his head against the door frame and struggled to catch his breath. "I'm okay," he muttered. "Just… need some air," he added, and then left the room, closing the door behind him.

It was the damn pills. The dream was bad enough, but the pills made him struggle to escape from it. Every aspect of the dream was more intense. The duration of each event was much longer.

Bobby wiped his forehead on his arm and went to the kitchen. He retrieved a glass from the cabinet and turned the tap on, full blast, to fill it. He closed off the water with a slap and downed the glass in one long gulp.

Bobby smacked the glass onto the counter and leaned against it heavily. His mind replayed the dream again, all the way from the sensation of her bare skin under his hands to the thrill of his climax, to the euphoria of murdering her.

_She murdered, over and over again, with no remorse. That must have been what it felt like for her,_ he thought to himself. Bobby shuddered, disgusted with himself. He heard Alex opening the bedroom door, and he retreated quickly to the study. He couldn't talk to her now, he couldn't even face her.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Alex came down the hall just in time to see the study door close. He was avoiding her. Frowning, she turned into the kitchen and set up the coffee. She checked the clock: five a.m. Just as she filled the back of the machine with water, Bobby's phone rang on the counter.

Alex picked it up. "Robert Goren's phone," she said, and was met with silence. Alex checked the display, and it read "UNAVAILABLE." Her body stiffened, and she took a deep breath. "Nicole," Alex finally said.

"Where's Bobby?" the woman answered.

"Oh, he's busy right now, Nicole, having a life. Without you."

Nicole's voice was full of amusement. "Ah-ah-ah, be careful… Captain Eames, now, isn't it? Wouldn't want something to upset the happy family. It must be hard, being so far from your baby girl."

Alex's heart constricted, but she kept her voice steady. "What is it you really want this time, Nicole? Is it Bobby? Money and toys weren't enough anymore, so you decided you need the one man you could never have? Well, you're too late, Nicole. Bobby made his decision a long time ago. He chose me."

"You silly girl," Nicole said. "You're jealous. You'd think a mature woman like you would be beyond all that. Perhaps the insecurity is there for a reason. Perhaps your little utopia isn't so perfect after all. Tell Bobby I called."

The phone clicked, and Nicole was gone. Alex held the phone in her fist and managed to keep from chucking it across the room. After a moment, she used it to call Katie.

"Daddy?" Katie said, shaking herself from her sleep.

"Oh, no, it's me, honey."

"Mom? What's wrong?"

"I'm sorry to wake you. Uhm… I just… needed to hear your voice."

"Are you okay, Mom?"

Alex forced herself to smile. "Sure. I'm okay."

* * *

Katie took out her pen and made a note on her ledger. "Obsessed with Daddy. Infatuated. Mid-life crisis?"

She looked through the file again. When her father used anthrax to trick Nicole into revealing her true identity, he'd said "If I could be wrong about Dan Croyden, then how could I be right about you?" She scanned through the transcript again. Her father had said, "You blew it, Nicole, your one chance of happiness with Gavin. One chance, and you had to come back to me? You couldn't leave well enough alone. That's the price of denial."

Katie sat back on her haunches and mused on that scene, that day, that interrogation. She'd still not read her father's reflections on these interrogations, but she knew him well enough that she had a sense of what he thought. Katie, however, saw something more. She put herself in Nicole's shoes.

Her pen flew across the paper. _Poor self-image due to childhood abuse, finds personal worth and value in acceptance/love from others. Manipulating others is easy for her, except for Daddy. She became obsessed with him not because she needed to substantiate her own delusions about herself, but because he was the only one she couldn't control. Distorted understanding of love and what love is… Nicole thinks she's in love with Daddy. She mistakes admiration and respect for love. Until she can force him to admit or demonstrate some kind of love for her, she cannot see herself as successful, she can't accept herself. His tactics of empathy work on her; when he says he believes there is good in her, she is encouraged that he feels something for her, that he loves her._

* * *

Alex opened the door to the study and found him in the desk chair, surrounded by his old notes about Nicole. His chin was resting on his hands, and he was staring at the Dick Tracey poster hanging over the desk.

Not sure how he was feeling, she put her hands on the backrest of the chair. "I… I have to go to work soon," she said. "Katie's okay. I called her."

"Alex, did I miss something?" He sat up straighter and waved a hand over the piles of paper in the room. "Is it possible that after all of this, I don't really have her figured out?"

She sighed and squatted on the floor beside his leg. "I don't know, Bobby. I don't see how."

"I'm sorry."

"I know."

Bobby took her hand and tugged on it until she rose and sat in his lap. He kissed her neck, then her jaw. "I love you."

Alex turned and kissed him sweetly on the mouth. "It's not about us, Bobby. There's never been any doubt here," she said. Alex hugged him.

"I have to go to work," she said again. Alex rose and walked back to the door, where she turned to face him. "Bobby, she called."

His anxiety level skyrocketed. "What did she want?!"

"To drive a wedge between us."

* * *

A/N Thanks for hanging in there with me! The chapters are coming slower now because I have to do a lot of research (aka rewatching awesome Nicole episodes) to get this right and to get Katie's take on the whole Bobby/Nicole thing. I will diligently pursue this and keep writing, but we may only have one chapter a day for a while. Just know my slower pace should pay off in a much better story for you! Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_Eight men in Thailand- accessory, convicted_

_ Three year old daughter_

_Elizabeth Hitchins_

_Franklin Winthrop – accessory_

_Kate Robbins – accessory_

_Mark Bayley_

_Connie Matson_

_Daniel Croydon – found not guilty_

_Ella Miyazaki_

_Zach Thaler_

_Larry Chapel_

_Bernard Freemont_

_Frank Goren_

Katie read and re-read the list, and chills crept through her every time, especially when she read the last name. Uncle Frank. She'd known he was murdered, but she'd never been told the details. She'd never known it was related to her parents' work, or that this woman was behind it.

Her eyes scanned the list again. Twenty people. Her father suspected that Nicole was involved in or committed the murder of twenty people. Katie folded her arms and held her breath. Those were only the ones they were aware of. This woman was a horror.

Disgusted, Katie hastily gathered up her research and piled it in a corner of the floor. She got into bed and curled into a ball, with the covers tight around her neck. She thought of the old pictures she'd seen of Uncle Frank, pictures from when they were kids. Katie knew Frank had been an addict. She knew he wasn't perfect. She also knew her Daddy loved him, and would always love him. Because of that, she loved him, too. No wonder her parents were afraid for her.

No wonder her father was so easily consumed by the pursuit of Nicole Wallace.

* * *

Mike Logan navigated the halls of the homeless shelter on the heels of the director, Phin O'Neal. At the end of the hall, they found Andy, covered from head to toe with purple paint. The walls of the bare room were also purple.

"Lookin' good, son," Mike said cheerfully.

Phin smiled. "It does look good, Andy. Thank you."

Andy's smile was as wide as his face. "It's not done yet. When this dries, I'm gonna put a rainbow on that wall, you know, and some clouds."

The men smiled as they pictured it. "You ready?" Mike asked.

"Uh, can I have about ten more minutes, Dad? I just want to finish up the trim."

"Sure, kid," Mike said. Phin shook both of their hands and headed back down the hall to his office. Mike took up a paintbrush and helped Andy finish the job.

* * *

"The Tercel turned up in Yonkers."

"Oh?" Bobby asked, with interest.

"We've got it in impound now. Wanna come have a look? Off the clock, you know. I just thought you'd want to see it."

"Yeah, sure. Thanks, Lichter."

"No problem, Goren." She gave him the time to meet her at the impound lot.

* * *

Mike led the way down the street to the Mustang.

"What is this?" Andy asked, astonished. "Uncle Bobby's?!"

Mike shrugged. "We needed a car; he wasn't using it."

Andy was stunned. He waited while his Dad opened the trunk and dropped in the supplies he was taking home for the night. "Dad… can I drive?"

Mike paused, looked at the keys, then at his son.

Andy hung his head. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't even ask. After what happened, I don't blame you if you never let me drive again."

"Whoa, hold on a second," Mike said. "That wasn't your fault, Andy. She forced you off the road. As far as I can tell, you did everything right. You both wore seat belts, you left by 10 like we asked you to…" Mike clutched the keys, waited until Andy looked up, and tossed them to his son. "Now… don't you put a scratch on this car, or Goren will never forgive me."

Thrilled, Andy ran around to the driver's side while Mike walked to the opposite side and climbed in.

* * *

Goren gloved up and peered inside the open door of the white Tercel. It had been burned, and there wasn't much chance of finding any useful evidence, but he was compelled to look, anyway.

He visually inspected the car first, then he squeezed into the seat and felt along the console, the ceiling, the glove box. He asked one of the technicians to pry the glove box open, and was pleased to find the contents relatively intact. Bobby removed the stack of papers and went through them slowly. He handed the car's registration to Lichter. "Anna Drake," he mumbled, committing the name to memory.

* * *

Katie sat in her English class, absently doodling in the margin of her notebook. The professor was droning on about responses to essays and expectations for the upcoming assignment. Katie was thinking of her father.

She'd read all the transcripts now, several times. She had been entirely focused on Wallace, on figuring her out, but now she found she was sidetracked, figuring her Daddy out.

He'd told Nicole he believed there was good in her. He attributed feelings to her that she either didn't have or didn't understand enough to act on in an appropriate way. It was personification, really. Nicole was no more capable of an honest emotion than her Daddy's mustang. Why would he do that?

On the other hand, he knew she was evil incarnate. He spoke openly to Wallace about the "unrelenting pursuit of evil." Nicole tried to put Bobby on the same plane as she, and he had stated with conviction that he was nothing like her.

Yet, he was like her. Katie's study of Nicole Wallace had convinced her of the woman's intelligence. The transcripts of the interrogations had convinced her that Wallace was just as accomplished in examination and cross-examination as her father. She was clever, carefully planning out her crimes, and even her own death. Of twenty victims, she had only served time in Thailand as an accessory to the murder of eight tourists. Her parents had arrested Nicole once and sent her to trial, but she'd been found not guilty thanks to a slick lawyer paid for with her husband's money. So for the murder of 12 other people, Nicole had been clean enough to get away.

Again, Katie reminded herself that those twenty victims were most likely only the tip of the iceberg. God Himself was the only one who knew, besides Nicole, how many deaths she was responsible for. And Bobby hadn't been able to catch her, not even for the murder of his own brother.

Bobby Goren despised this woman for the hateful things she'd done, but he admired her cleverness and her intelligence. In spite of the woman she had grown to become, he empathized with the abused child she had been.

Her father's empathy was honest, and that was the thing that truly encouraged Nicole's craving for him. Katie sighed. That was the thing that kept him so tangled up in her web.

* * *

Bobby was cooking dinner when his phone rang. He checked the display before answering. "Hey."

"What are you up to?"

"I, uh, I thought I'd make us some dinner."

She smiled, pleased to hear he wasn't obsessing about Nicole. "Good," Alex said, then frowned. "Only I'm not going to make it home on time. I'm sorry, Bobby. We've got a case that's down to the wire, here."

"Oh, you know, no sweat. It's fine. I'll just, you know, put it up for you for later."

"I love you."

He smiled. "I know. I'll see you later, Eames."

"Bye, Bobby."

He ended the call, set the phone down on the table, and sighed. Looking over the meal, he started turning off the burners. He dished out enough for himself and then sat down to eat while the rest of the food cooled.

When the phone rang, flashing its "UNAVAILABLE" caller ID, he stared at it, motionless. After the third ring, he snatched it up in his hand. "Goren," he barked.

"I called you this morning. Did she tell you?"

"Yes."

"She is quite insecure, you know. How often do you show her you love her? Or perhaps… things are slowing down with your advancing age."

"No, Nicole, things are still pretty peppy around here. How about you? Did you and Anna Drake, you know, have a romp first, or did you just kill her and steal her car?"

"Now _your_ insecurities are showing, Bobby. Rather than a thoughtful response to my question, you become judgmental and accusatory. I haven't killed anyone."

"I'm sure my brother would disagree."

She feigned sympathy. "I heard about your brother, Bobby. I heard he killed himself."

"Frank… Frank hated needles, Nicole. You injected him and shoved him out the window. Y-you get sloppy sometimes, Nicole. Don't do enough… research. He was my… brother. Did you think I didn't know him?"

"You feel guilty that he died while you were estranged."

"At least I'm capable of remorse." He heard her breathing on the other end of the line, but his words had scored a hit.

"You've changed, Bobby," she said sadly, and hung up the phone.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"Katie? Yoo-hoo, Katie!" Goren looked up and saw Lisa standing over her, waving her hand in front of her face.

"Oh, sorry, Lisa."

"You're really spaced out lately, aren't you?" Lisa said, dropping into the chair across from her.

"I just… have a lot on my mind." Katie shrugged and stirred her coffee before giving a quick glance around the room.

"Only a few more days until that Prom. Did you pick out a dress yet?"

"No, Mom is coming tomorrow, we're going to go looking. You?"

"I found one in the vintage shop. It's fabulous!" She went on to describe the dress, and Katie's mind wandered again. "Katie!" Lisa said. "You're not listening."

Katie shook her head again. "Look, Lisa… I guess I'm not feeling so well. I'll call you tomorrow, okay? Maybe we can get together, show off the dresses."

"O-okay." Lisa watched her friend grab her purse and quickly walk out of the coffee house.

* * *

He was making a real effort to control his obsession, but he still wasn't sleeping. Alex woke up for the hundredth time as he rolled over and threw his arm over his face. She turned to her side and rested her arm across his chest.

Bobby put one hand over her arm and stroked it gently, trying to focus on the comfort there, rather than the worries that were plaguing him.

"You can come with me, you know," she said quietly.

"N-no, dresses, you know, that should be a mother-daughter thing. Besides, I promised Andy I would come look at the children's room he made at the shelter."

They lay in silence a few moments, enjoying each other's touch. "I made a mistake, Alex."

She pushed up on her elbow and looked down into his eyes.

"I… I was cold to her… I didn't… I didn't give her any, you know… encouragement."

Alex smoothed her hand across his chest.

"I just… I kept thinking of Frank and I… guess my emotions got the best of me." He looked her in the eye. "I'm glad you'll be with Katie today. I just don't know how Nicole will react. She sounded… hopeless."

He sat up and pulled himself back in the bed to lean against the headboard. "She said she never hurt Katie because she didn't want to hurt me." His face contorted with worry. "After tonight, she may want to… hurt me."

* * *

Katie noticed the minivan across the street and stared for a moment. She ticked back through her mind, trying to figure when she'd first seen it and how many times she'd seen it in the last few weeks. She was unable to see the driver from her dorm window, but she could tell there was a person in the vehicle. Occasionally, she glimpsed a hand reaching out over the dash. A woman's hand.

Fear got the better of her. She drew the blinds shut tight and double checked the lock on her door, then went to bed.

* * *

Katie gave Alex a long hug, which she gladly returned. When she finally pulled back, Alex looked at her daughter. She was shocked to see how much she looked like Bobby. Not in the usual sense; she'd always taken after him. There was something in her eyes. There was something reigning in the enthusiasm that was the mark of her personality. Her spark was dimmed.

"Are you all right, honey?" Alex asked her, concerned.

Katie nodded uncertainly, then her eyes filled with tears. "I think she's stalking me," she whispered.

Alex's mother bear instinct kicked in. "Show me," she commanded.

* * *

"It's still in one piece," Bobby teased, running his hand along the hood of his car.

"You should see Andy drive it," Mike said. "I've never seen him take such care of anything."

Bobby grinned at his old friend.

"All right, I'm ready," Andy said, locking the door as he stepped out on the stoop. He walked over to the passenger door and waited for someone to unlock the car so he could climb in.

Bobby and Mike shared a knowing look, then Bobby walked over and pressed the keys into Andy's hand. "I'm too tired to drive," he said.

Andy's heart nearly stopped. He hurried over to the driver's side and the three of them piled into the car.

Bobby was pleased with Andy's driving, and with the way he babied the car. After a nice parallel park on the street, the men got out, and Andy dutifully returned Bobby's keys. The older men followed Andy inside the shelter.

"Bobby!" the director cried, giving him a firm handshake.

"Good to see you, Phin," Bobby said, and gave him a pat on the arm.

"This young man has done a lot of work here, that's for sure," Phin announced. "You should be proud of him," he said to Mike.

"I am," Mike replied. He looked to Andy. "Let's see it," he said. With the director's blessing, they walked down the hall and Andy proudly threw open the door.

The room was transformed. The walls were cheerful with the rainbow mural, and there were now low bookshelves all along two walls, and a play kitchen on another. There was also a toybox overflowing with toys.

"Andy, this looks terrific!" Bobby said, giving his shoulder a squeeze.

Andy beamed. "Now I just have to get the books on the shelves, and the kids can start using it tonight."

Mike rolled up his sleeves. "Well let's get to it," he said. Bobby rubbed his hands together, eager to help, too. Andy turned and showed them where the boxes were stacked, containing the donated books.

* * *

Alex texted Bobby with the information about the van, and after a good brunch, she and Katie turned their minds to the task of dress shopping. By 2:00, they had one, a sapphire blue floor length dress with spaghetti straps and a sexy slit up the side. They stopped for a late lunch before heading out to find shoes.

"You got my text?" Alex said into the phone.

"Yeah. I sent it all over to Lichter. It's registered to Lucille Merck. She's got her people searching for her. How's Katie?" he asked.

"Shopping was a good distraction."

"She's afraid."

"Of course she is. And she's overthinking it. She takes after her father that way."

"You've been known to do your fair share of worrying too, my love."

Alex smiled. "Let's just lock her up once and for all and be done with her."

"They found Anna Drake's body in the Hudson."

"That's another notch in her purse," Alex said dryly.

"I'm going to the ME's office with Lichter in a few minutes. Maybe we'll be able to get her on this one."

"I hope so, Bobby. I hope so."

"I love you, Alex."

"I love you, too."


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Alex dropped Katie at the dorm and went back to the hotel for the night. She would have breakfast with her daughter in the morning before heading home. It was hard to be away from her family, and tonight she felt the separation more strongly than ever. Nicole had upset the apple cart, and Alex was the one trying to hold everyone together.

For the thousandth time in the last two weeks, she tried to decipher her own feelings about Nicole Wallace. Hatred. Revulsion. Those were her strongest feelings. The woman had accused her of jealousy. Alex thought long and hard. Was she jealous of whatever it was between Nicole and Bobby?

Alex thought back to the times they'd sniffed out the woman's trail. Even in those early years, she had seen the hold Wallace had on him. Yes. She was jealous.

She was jealous that Nicole Wallace could capture Bobby's complete attention with hardly any effort. She was jealous of the power Nicole had over her husband. And she was jealous of that way he looked at Nicole sometimes. Alex had told Katie the truth, but she'd left that part out. Bobby was attracted to Nicole, of that she had no doubt. And Alex _was_ jealous.

Trivial. The fact that he was attracted to her was a superfluous trifle. Bobby loved Alex with his whole heart and had given his heart to her completely. Given the opportunity, he would never act on his attraction to Wallace… even if she weren't a hideous excuse for a human being.

The phone rang, and she nearly jumped out of her skin. "Eames," she said.

"You're up?" he asked, and she almost laughed.

"No, I'm talking in my sleep," she snarked.

"I couldn't sleep."

"Me either."

"I don't like it when you're gone."

"Me either."

"Katie all right?"

"Yes, all decked out for Andy's prom. She'll knock them all off their feet."

"I'm not gonna have a problem with this, this dress, am I?"

"Honey, she's all grown up now."

"Alex."

"Very tasteful. It does have a slit up the side, but you hardly notice it."

"Those are the kind you _do _notice."

"She's beautiful in it."

"I know." He curled one arm back behind his head. "Alex, I think she's going to make her move soon. Either on me or one of you."

"Katie's on the ball," Alex said. "Maybe a little too cautious, but I'm glad for it."

"You be cautious, too. If anything happened to you, Alex-"

"Hey." She didn't have to say another word. He stopped, and Alex changed the subject. "I should be home by noon tomorrow. You want me to convince Katie to come?"

"Of course I do," he said. "But I can't ask her to do that. She deserves more." He sighed, and let the silence grow between them. When he spoke again, his voice was much softer. "Look, uh… you've got a long drive tomorrow. I'll let you get some rest."

"Good night, Bobby."

"Good night, Alex."

* * *

Carolyn Logan took a long, deep breath before she dialed the phone. She was working on a Sunday, not an uncommon thing for her.

Alex's voicemail answered, and Carolyn hung up. It was against protocol, but the Goren family were the closest friends she, Mike, and Andy had. She dialed her phone again.

"Goren," Bobby said. He sounded busy, distracted.

"Bobby, it's Carolyn. I'm working," she said briskly, setting the tone with finality.

"What is it, Carolyn?"

"One of my teams searched Anna Drake's apartment. Evidence was found that… Bobby, Katie was being stalked."

"By?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"No prints, no clear way to know. Just a picture of Katie in with the woman's bills."

* * *

Katie had just finished reading her Dad's notes about Nicole Wallace when her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and saw the caller ID was no help.

"Hello," she said, her mouth suddenly dry.

"You're a very smart girl," said the woman with the Australian accent.

A surge of adrenaline went through her. "Hello, Nicole," she said calmly, though her hands were shaking.

There was a pause while Nicole smiled at her popularity. "I've seen you watching me," Wallace said.

"Turnabout is fair play," said Katie.

Another pause, another smile. "You are so like your Daddy. Shall we meet?"

Katie licked her lips and swallowed. "What do you propose?"

"Just two girls, sharing a cup of coffee together. Or are you old enough to drink?"

"Coffee is fine," Goren said.

"It's important we keep our little rendezvous secret. Someone's life may depend on it."

"Predictable," Katie said.

"But effective," Nicole countered.

"All right. When?"

"Tonight, eight o'clock. Just be at your little coffee haunt. I'll find you." The call ended.

Katie's hands shook as she closed up her phone. She started to cry.

* * *

Andy and Darren were at the formal shop, renting tuxedos for Friday night. They had found all the right accessories that would match the dresses the girls would be wearing, and were waiting for the manager to draw up the rental agreement. Andy's phone buzzed, and he checked his text message. Stepping away, he worked his thumbs furiously over the phone, his brow knitted with worry.

Darren stayed at the counter, but noticed the change in his friend. After two more texts back and forth, Andy returned to the counter, obviously unhappy. They signed the agreements and took their copies with them out the door.

On the sidewalk, Andy was so distracted he bumped into a young girl who was walking by. He apologized and helped her up as Darren watched.

She was very pretty. She wore skinny jeans and a tank top that showed off her smooth shoulders and dipped a little in the front to reveal her cleavage. Her shoulder length hair framed her face. She accepted his hand and smiled as she got up.

"Are you all right?" He asked her with genuine concern.

"Oh, yes, sure." She smiled again, and asked, "Are you? Something heavy on your mind, eh?"

He shrugged and waggled his phone in the air. "Just my… sister. I'm Andy, Andy Logan."

"Jasmine Lee." Another smile and she hooked her thumbs in her front pocket. She saw his eyes flit down to her cleavage before they moved back up to her face. "You got a wedding or something?" She asked, nodding to the formal store.

He grinned. "No, just you know, Prom."

"Oh," she said, sounding disappointed. "I guess you have a girlfriend, then."

"Oh, no. I'm going with a friend of my sister's. Just, you know, for the experience of it." She gave him a toothy grin and he asked, "Are you busy later?"

"Actually, no, I'm not."

"Maybe we could… hit a movie or something?"

"Sounds great."

Darren waited while the two exchanged phone numbers and wrapped things up. Andy always made it look so easy. For Darren, asking a girl out was torturous. Finally, Andy joined him and they headed down the street to the subway station.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Andy met her for the 6:30 show. He was in his best jeans and an oxford shirt with vertical stripes. She was in a knee-length skirt and a white button down blouse. As they waited in the ticket line, he admired her muscular legs.

As soon as the lights dimmed in the theater, he felt her hand on his thigh. Andy set his coke in the cupholder and leaned back, throwing his arm around her. It wasn't long before they were kissing.

Andy didn't have much experience with girls. He'd been too busy, really, with scouts and school. He'd gotten to second base before, with Molly Franklin, but that was last summer, a long time ago.

Jasmine was interested. Their kisses were deep, and her hands started to roam over his chest and against his cheek. They missed the entire movie, and reluctantly separated so they could leave the theater. Andy twined his fingers with hers and stumbled after her into the night.

"I really like you, Jasmine," he said as he offered to walk her home.

"It's this way," she said, "a short cut." She led him into a dark alley. Once hidden in the shadows, she stopped walking and put a hand on his neck, drawing him in for more kissing. Andy obliged. He was so turned on he didn't know how to slow down.

Her hand rubbed his crotch and he groaned aloud. She unbuttoned her blouse, and he was captivated. As he started to move his hands in to touch her bra, his cell phone vibrated in his pocket and knocked him for a loop. His hand bumped her arm as he reached back quickly to check it.

It was a text from Katie. _I'm going now._

Instantly, Andy felt terrible. Katie was about to risk her life, and he'd forgotten. He'd been so wrapped up in Jasmine and thoughts of sex that he'd completely forgotten. He jammed his phone back into his pocket and looked up, but Jasmine was gone, disappearing around the corner, yelling something back at him about how he wasn't really interested in her.

The young man sighed and turned, just as a car's headlights making a turn swept a ray of light into the alley. He thought he saw a syringe on the ground where Jasmine had been. No big deal, to see a syringe in an alley in New York City. But Andy thought the syringe looked… full.

He used his phone as a flashlight and found the syringe, realizing at once that it was full of something and that it was exactly the kind they used in the doctor's office. Suddenly sweating, he called his father.

* * *

At the police station, Mike and Carolyn came in together and gave Andy hugs. At Mike's request, the police had waited to interview him until they arrived. One of the detectives invited all of the Logans into an interview room.

"Dad," Andy said. "Uh… I can't…" Head down, he gestured briefly at his mother.

Mike looked back at his wife. She was hurt, but she knew Andy needed his father. She nodded and stepped back to an empty chair by the wall and sat down.

Mike put his hand over Andy's shoulder and walked in with him. They sat down at the table: Mike, Andy, and Detective Sang. "You said you thought she was going to try to kill you," Sang said. "Why?"

"A… a few weeks ago, this woman ran me and my friend off the road and kidnapped us, locking us in her basement."

Mike nodded at the officer. "New Haven Connecticut. The suspect is Nicole Wallace. Look her up. She's used a lot of syringes to kill people."

"And this was Nicole Wallace you were with tonight?"

"No, I don't think so. I've never seen her, but she's older. The girl I was with tonight looked my age."

"Wallace kidnapped you and you've never seen her?"

Mike leaned forward and used his quiet but all-business tone. "Don't give him grief about it. Look it up."

"All right, all right." The officer glanced back over to Andy. "This girl was your age, you say?"

"Yeah."

"Describe her."

Andy did. "She said her name was Jasmine Lee." The detective wrote that down.

"How did you know her?"

"I met her earlier today." He explained the circumstances of their meeting, and how he asked her out. We went to the movies, and…" Andy blushed. "We made out for the whole time the movie was on. Then I was walking her home and she took me into the alley."

Andy looked over at his father, obviously upset with himself. "Dad, I thought she liked me." At the prompting of Detective Sang, Andy told the whole story, including all the details of how far their groping had gone.

Andy was sent out, with an encouraging hug from his father, to wait with his mother. "Look," Mike told the detective. "I was on the force. I was a detective with Major Case. My wife is the head of CSU. If you get the results back on that syringe and it's something deadly, you've got to look into Nicole Wallace. The lead detective on her right now is a woman named Lichter, at the 5-4. You should find her in the records from Connecticut."

Sang's phone rang, and he held a finger up for Logan to wait. He thanked the person and hung up. "We just got those results, Mr. Logan. It was rohypnol. It would have killed your son in seconds."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The good thing about having a regular haunt was you got to know the people who worked there. An hour ago, Katie had called and asked them to hold the corner booth for her at 8:00, and they did.

It was the largest table in the room, a roundish thing in the corner, designed to seat up to ten people at once. It was so large that if two people sat across from each other, they would be hard pressed even to be able to play footsie.

Katie slipped her book bag off her shoulders, slid into the booth, and set her bag beside her. She took off her raincoat and crumpled it on the seat on her other side. That should discourage Wallace from getting too close.

She ordered a latte and waited. She recognized her immediately, and followed her with her eyes as she walked across the room and sat down across from her at the table. Nicole saw the protective fortress Katie had placed around herself and smiled.

"Hello, darling. I'm Nicole."

"I recognized you from your pictures."

"You are the spitting image of him, aren't you?"

"People say I favor Daddy." She warily watched her as she took another sip of her coffee.

"I suppose you're wondering why I wanted to see you." Katie waited patiently. "Your Daddy has some thinking to do, Darling. He needs a little… encouragement… from someone he loves."

"I won't help you drive my parents apart, Nicole."

Nicole smiled. "No. Of course not." She sat back, looking Katie squarely in the eye. "Perhaps Andy, then…"

Katie blanched, and Nicole smiled. "Text him. I think you'll find he's too busy to reply."

Katie texted Andy quickly, and her heart sank when he didn't send her a message back. Andy always responded to her texts right away, even when he was at school.

"Tell your Daddy I want him to meet me." She slipped a piece of paper across the table that contained the address and time. "Tell him to come alone."

"I've been researching you," Katie said, effectively stopping Nicole from leaving. "Did you know what my Daddy told Bernard Freemont? He told him he'd always wondered what you would have been like… if you'd never met _him._ Daddy has always thought there was hope for you, Nicole. You did the right thing with Gwen. You weren't thinking of yourself, then. You made a sacrifice for her, like any good parent would."

Nicole sank back down into the seat and gave her a genuine smile. "I've made a lot of sacrifices, Katie Goren. A lot of sacrifices, in the name of love." She studied Katie's face one more time. "You really do favor him." She nodded at the note on the table. "You'll give the message to Bobby. And darling, tell him… this is his last chance."

Katie watched her walk out of the shop and then started shaking. She called Andy, who didn't answer. She called Mike, who didn't answer. Then she called Carolyn.

* * *

"Katie just called me," she said quietly to Mike. "She thought Nicole had Andy."

Mike did a doubletake. "How would she suspect?"

Andy overheard. "She met with Nicole tonight. About the same time I was walking Jasmine home."

Mike called Bobby and Carolyn called Alex.

* * *

Alex was at the dorm, by the reception desk, pacing. Her arms were folded across her chest, and she was angry.

"Hi Mom," Katie said quietly.

Alex flew to her and wrapped her in a hug. Pulling away, she asked, "Are you all right?"

Katie nodded. "A little shaky, but I'm okay." She could see her mother's anger just under the surface. "I'm sorry, Mom."

"You damn well should be sorry. How somebody so smart could be so stupid is beyond me." Alex folded her arms again. "We need to talk."

Katie shrugged towards the stairs. "Come with me?"

Alex followed her all the way to the dorm room. Once inside, she immediately saw the Wallace files strewn about the room. Alex raised a hand to her mouth. "What have you been doing?"

"Studying," Katie said. "I was afraid. I thought the more I knew, the safer I would be." She cocked her head to force her mother to look at her. "I guess it worked," she said shakily.

Alex was furious now. "Don't you get cocky about this, Katie. Not this." She held a warning finger in the air. "Andy was almost killed tonight."

The hurt showed in Katie's face.

"Nicole was training a protégé. She had a syringe prepared and ready for him. Your text startled her, and she dropped the syringe and ran away." Alex paced and shook her head. "Just dumb luck. And as far as you know, your 'successful' meeting with her was dumb luck, too." She pulled out her phone. "You're going to call your father. He's probably worried sick."

Katie did as she was told. "Hi Daddy," she said timidly.

He roared at her from the other end of the line, and she cringed. At first she was ashamed. Then she felt hurt at the lack of trust both parents were showing her. Finally, Katie got angry, too.

"You were wrong about her, Daddy!" she shouted into the phone. Immediately, both of her parents took notice. "She's in love with you, and she can't move on until she gets your approval. She'll never do what you want her to do until you show her some kind of, well, love." There was total silence on the other end of the line, and Katie continued. "You've been teasing her all these years, with your little moments of empathy."

All at once, Alex was waving her fingers in the air, saying "Give me the phone" over and over. Katie handed it to her.

"Bobby, don't." Alex listened to him on the other end. "You need to set this aside for the moment and go find Lichter."

"She wants to meet Daddy," Katie said. She handed her mom the paper that Nicole had given her.

"Looks like you have a date Thursday night," Alex told him.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

The brief moments he slept were disturbed by the dream. This time the kids were watching him make love to her, watching him kill her. He dreamt it over and over until he finally got up and stayed up.

Katie's insight ignited a firestorm in his brain. He cleaned up the study, reorganized all the material, and went back through it all, with Katie's words in mind.

She was right. In her sick, perverted way, Nicole Wallace was in love with him. She loved him both as a father figure and as a potential mate. Katie had found the thing he was missing. He'd written it off, thinking her incapable of love, thinking she reappeared for the fun of the game, the thrill of a little adventure now and then. But there was more.

As the images from the dream attacked him once more, he realized that Katie already knew. In the same way she was watching him with Nicole in the dream, she already knew the details of his relationship with Nicole in real life. He scrubbed his hand over his whiskers. He felt dirty.

Nicole wanted to meet him Thursday night in the city. She'd picked out a spot in Times Square.

Alex was staying with Katie again today. Once Nicole found out Andy was still alive, she could retaliate against Katie. He and Alex both were afraid for their daughter's safety. The Logans were sticking close to Andy, as well. She might come finish the job herself.

When Bobby thought about his impending meeting with Wallace, he knew what he had to do. The thought sickened him. He desperately needed to talk to Alex about it, but she was nearly three hours away in Connecticut, and this wasn't something he could talk about over the phone.

* * *

Alex brought Katie home with her on Wednesday night. After a tearful apology between all parties, the Goren family was at peace again. Thursday morning, Katie went to spend the day with the Logans so Bobby and Alex could have time to talk.

She was cleaning the kitchen counter when he walked in behind her and put his arms around her. Alex left the sponge on the marble countertop and turned, kissing his lips. He kissed her hard, some kind of desperation in his approach.

They split apart, pausing to kiss again and again before he finally stood back, holding both of her hands in his. She searched his face. "What, Bobby?"

"I have to see her tonight."

Alex nodded.

"Katie was right, Alex. She has Nicole figured out." _And me_, he neglected to add.

"You think she's in love with you."

"I know what I have to do, Alex. But I can't do it… without your permission."

Alex knew without him speaking the words. She looked him straight in the eye. "You do what you have to do to get rid of Nicole once and for all, Bobby. You do whatever it takes."

* * *

Bobby was in all black. It looked handsome, but it was a kind of hidden message for him. He was mourning the loss of the life he'd had with his wife. Nicole would never know the toll this evening would take on him.

The night club was full of energy. As far as his safety was concerned, he was counting on her love for him to keep him safe. If she came planning to kill him, in these crowds, with the lights strobing off and on from pitch black, she could kill him with a syringe with no effort at all. And she would have the proximity, tonight, to do it, too.

He sat at a table, looking out over the room and swallowed hard when he saw her approaching. "Thank you, Nicole," was the first thing he said. He didn't elaborate. The thanks was for an abundance of things: not killing his daughter, giving him the opportunity to try again…

"You're welcome, Bobby." She eyed him with pleasure.

"I… I owe you an apology," he began.

"Oh, Bobby, that's simply not necessary. I do know how to forgive, you know."

He glanced around at the crowd while she settled in across from him. "I guess I… I guess I was in denial about myself. I mean, you were right about me. I am insecure."

She offered him a compassionate smile.

"And if I'm really honest, life with Alex hasn't been… all I ever wanted it to be." Bobby chuckled to himself. "'The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation,' after all."

"Oh my. You're quoting Thoreau."

He looked at her now. "I thought you were dead, Nicole. They found your heart, after all. And then you showed up and…" He glanced around again, then gave her a shy smile as he said, "I've been having dreams… about us."

She smiled. "You can't expect me to believe that you forgive me."

Bobby shook his head. "No. I can't forgive the things I know. But I can't deny my heart, either. There's something about you, Nicole. You've always kept me up at night." He drummed his fingers on the table as he glanced around the room again. "I've been going back through the files. We never had solid proof." He shrugged and shook his head. "I could convince myself I was wrong."

"And Frank?"

"Someone killed him. I don't know it was you." Bobby shifted in the seat and leaned over to her. "I'm older now, Nicole. I know," he laughed, "I know I'm on the tail end of this roller coaster ride. Time to take a risk, take a chance." His energy was up now, and he was nearly bouncing as he spoke. "'After all, a little danger keeps you on your toes.'"

She knew he was quoting her, and she was flattered. She flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "These dreams you have… I suppose I'm sitting around knitting while you're saving the world?"

He gave her an embarrassed grin. Bobby looked away and mustered all the strength he had. When he turned back to her, there was something in his eyes she'd never been privileged to see before. "No, Nicole," he said, in a throaty voice. "You're definitely not… knitting." He glanced down at her bosom before he looked away.

She was pleased with this revelation. She removed her sweater and saw him watching her from his peripheral vision. She smoothed her shirt back down, touching her own breasts in the process. Goren twitched.

He jerked his head at the dance floor. "Wanna dance?" he asked her.

Her smile grew, and she stood, allowing him to take her hand. "I remember last time you held my hand, Bobby. It's so much nicer this way, isn't it?"

As they danced, he drew her body in closer and closer to his own, until he could feel her brushing against his groin. Bobby was overwhelmed with revulsion. He shoved his true emotions from his mind and forced himself to only think about the physical sensations. Without interference from his mind, his body began to respond.

Nicole was beside herself with joy. She pressed her body close to his and put the tips of her fingers into the hair just above his neck.

Bobby leaned down and kissed her.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

They'd made it as far as a hotel room. Bobby had suffered a few stop and starts along the way. He had to keep turning off his brain in order to carry through with the plan. The physical part of it was pleasant; Nicole was very experienced. In spite of the time spent necking, he was still wearing his pants.

He got on the bed with her, exploring her face and neck with his lips. At once, he rolled off of her and groaned. "This is never going to work. We can never have a… chance together, Nicole. Not like this."

"Leave that to me, Bobby," she said, and took the position on top, now exploring him.

"But Nicole, the kidnapping, Anna Drake… you have to turn yourself in, take care of that first."

She sat back. "And then they'll hold me for one of the others. I can't turn myself in, Bobby. They'll never let me go. You wouldn't have."

"I've been through the evidence in all the others. There's nothing there to charge you with. For the kidnapping, you have to turn yourself in. For Anna Drake." He sat up and ran his hand through her hair. "It's the only way, Nicole. For us to have a chance, we have to be free and clear. If I just run away with you… Alex will be relentless. If I can talk to her about it, give her closure, she'll have to let me go."

Nicole's mind was spinning. For a moment, she wondered if this was a trap. She looked down at him,ran her hand over his hairy chest. He was so vulnerable to her now. Bobby would never allow himself to be so vulnerable. Not when he was trying to trick her. He had always maintained a physical distance from her.

"Aren't you worried, Bobby?" she asked. "That I will just watch you fall asleep… forever?"

"Nicole," he said softly, taking her and kissing her again. He let his hand slide up her torso under her shirt. "We've waited so long. _You've_ waited so long. You deserve so much more than one night." Another wave of disgust crashed over him, but before his body could turn off, Bobby concentrated on the weight of her breast in his hand. Lost in the sense of touch, he could maintain his façade.

"It's not your fault, Nicole," he whispered as he nipped and sucked at her neck. "You didn't ask for the life you were given. You did the best you could with what you had."

He pulled her shirt over her head and explored her bosom with his face and his hands. Nicole arched back, overwhelmed by the sensations and the knowledge of who was giving her these sensations.

"There isn't any evidence as far as Drake is concerned. You could say you were friends and you borrowed her car. So it's only the kidnapping you have to worry about." He kissed her on the mouth again.

Nicole didn't answer him. She continued to assault his senses with her sexual advances. Bobby tried one more time, but she still wouldn't commit to turning herself in.

Finally, as she ran her hand up along the zipper of his pants, he put his hand over hers and stopped her. Bobby rolled off the bed and stepped back, breaking the contact with her. He grabbed his black shirt off the chair. "I can't do this," he said. He picked up his shoes off the floor and inched backwards towards the door, never taking his eyes off her. "I can't, Nicole. You turn yourself in, and… then I can… talk to you about it."

Bobby pulled the door open and stepped out. He didn't turn his back until the door was secure behind him. He heard the crash of the lamp hitting the door behind him and her screaming obscenities at him. Quickly, he stepped into the elevator and got himself dressed as he rode it down.

* * *

He debriefed with Lichter before he headed home. Bobby took the long way home, taking two detours on the subway before finally heading in the right direction. Once he arrived, he spent twenty minutes scrubbing himself in the shower, and he still didn't feel clean.

Then, he made himself a bed on the couch and tried to get some sleep.

* * *

Alex was the first to wake in the morning. She saw Bobby sprawled uncomfortably on the couch, and she was relieved that he made it home. She hoped he was all right.

Quietly, she set up the coffee and started some cinnamon rolls in the oven. Both Katie and Bobby loved cinnamon rolls, and they were the remedy for almost any family crisis.

Katie was upset to see her father had slept on the couch, and a look from Alex stopped her from waking him with a hug. Alex waved her into the kitchen and whispered, "Let him sleep. He's had a very hard night."

"Did he tell you?"

"Not yet."

"It didn't work. He would have called in the night if it worked."

"Sometimes you have to wait for results."

"Cinnamon rolls?" Bobby asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I thought we could use some," Alex announced. She didn't try to approach him. She made eye contact until he looked away.

"Andy's prom is tonight," Bobby said quietly to Katie.

"Yeah. Lisa will be here at noon, and we're going to get ready together."

* * *

"Andy!" Mike called from the kitchen. "Get down here and clean up this mess!"

He listened to his son's footsteps down the stairs, followed by those of Darren. "Sorry, Dad," Andy said and he and his friend picked up their dirty dishes, loaded the dishwasher, and wiped off the table.

"Morning, Mom," Andy said when Carolyn walked in, half asleep and headed for the coffee pot.

"Let me," Mike said, grabbing a cup out of the cabinet. "You'll probably miss and burn yourself," he added. He poured her a cup of coffee and handed it to her with a kiss on the cheek. "What time did you come in?"

"Four," she said. "We did it, though. Got everything back to the proper precincts. Everybody's happy today, the Chief of D's, the DA, everybody."

Mike smiled at her. "That's my girl," he said, and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"Darren, do you live here now?" She teased.

"Tonight's prom!" Darren said. "I was driving my mom crazy, pacing all over the house, so she told me to go find Andy."

"So now they can drive _us_ crazy," Mike said, and earned a smile from his wife.

"Oh, I don't mean to bother you," Darren said.

"No, Darren, we're just teasing. You're always welcome here, son," Carolyn explained, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"We're gonna go shoot some hoops, Dad, you wanna come?"

Mike and Carolyn exchanged a knowing glance. Mike poured the rest of his coffee in the sink. "Sure, let me get my shoes on."


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

It had been very, very hard, but Bobby had managed to drift at least on the edge of the happenings with his family throughout the day. His mind was still consumed with Wallace, he was still tortured by what he had done the night before, but he had done it for the sake of his family, and he had the chance to be with them while he healed.

Katie and Lisa emerged from Katie's room and did a quick march and twirl in the living room for both Alex and Bobby's benefit. Bobby's daughter came and stood in front of him, and he was overwhelmed with emotion. "Beautiful," he said quietly. With that familiar spark in her eye, she quickly kissed his cheek and squealed something about her hair to her mother.

Bobby watched her walk confidently in heels, her leg peeking from behind the slit at times, and he remembered watching her take her first steps.

"Okay, stand over here, girls, we have to get pictures," Alex commanded. The girls stood together by the wall, and Alex took a few snapshots. Then she took some of each girl individually.

Bobby quietly took the camera from Alex and asked her to stand with Katie for a picture. Then he got one of all three of the ladies. He looked up at the clock. "Almost 6," he said.

"You girls be careful not to lead the boys on," Alex said. "You are in college. Set a good example."

"Mom, that's the whole reason they asked us," Katie said, "because we're in college."

"Darren has the hots for you, Katie," Bobby said.

"What?"

"He… he's interested," Bobby said. "Go easy on him."

The doorbell rang before they could discuss it further. Andy and Darren looked fabulous. Darren's tux jacket went right over his cast and it was hardly noticeable.

After more pictures, the group of kids said their goodbyes and left. Lewis had loaned Andy an old Rolls Royce he got hold of, and they were driving themselves in high style.

They were going to dinner first, and then to the ballroom at the Hyatt for the dance. Mike Logan had agreed to discreetly keep an eye on them at dinner. Alex was going to post herself outside the dance.

Alex closed the apartment door and turned to Bobby. It was their first chance to talk privately since his date with Wallace. She walked over and put her hands on his shoulders. "You okay?" She asked.

He shook his head slowly. "No."

Alex looked into his eyes.

"I didn't sleep with her."

Alex nodded quietly.

"I… I tried, but… Alex, I couldn't go through with it. There was no guarantee it would work, anyway." He went into the kitchen and drank the rest of a glass of water he'd been nursing. "I left… I left the door open, didn't turn her down cold… but… it was a mistake. She'll hate me now more than ever."

Alex stared at the floor tiles for a moment, then walked up to him. "Well. Now she'll know how I feel about her." She wrapped her arms around Bobby and hugged him tight, and she could feel him relax a little in her arms.

"I've got to get ready," she said. She started to pull away, but Bobby didn't let her go.

"I'm sorry, Alex. I love you."

"No apologies," she said. "I wanted you to do it, remember?" She kissed him. "I love you, too."

* * *

A call from Mike confirmed that dinner was uneventful, and that Andy even managed to keep his napkin in his lap and use the right fork for his salad. Alex checked in with hotel security and left her badge visible as she walked around the perimeter of the hotel, as well as in and out of the main halls leading to the ballroom.

She caught a glimpse of the kids coming in and took care to stay out of their sight so as not to ruin their evening.

At 9:00, Bobby called.

"She's going to try something," he said with conviction.

"Bobby, everything's fine here."

"She called, Alex. She cried, said I was the worst of them all, no better than her father. She wants to hurt me now. She's going to try."

"I'll keep close," Alex promised.

"I'm coming out there."

* * *

Darren danced a slow dance with Katie, and finally got up his nerve. He leaned in and kissed her on the ear. She drew back quickly, but politely finished the dance. Then she excused herself and went to the ladies' room, to hide and to think.

A woman in a housekeeping uniform with a dark wig walked up to the mirror beside her. "You are like him, aren't you," she said calmly.

Katie's blood turned to ice.

"Now, darling… you're going to walk out of here as if you're leading me to a mess I need to clean up. We're going to the basement. The elevators are to your left. C'mon, now…" She touched her arm. "I could kill you now, if you'd rather."

Katie gulped and started walking out, in the direction of the elevators.

Andy noticed Katie was gone and found Darren. "Where is she?"

"I blew it, Andy," Darren whined. "I kissed her and she ran off to the bathroom and I haven't seen her since."

Andy ignored his friend's drama and hurried off in the direction of the bathroom. He found the nearest girl and asked her to go inside and look for Katie. He texted her, but she didn't text back. Andy spun in a circle in the hallway, trying to keep calm in spite of the panic that was rising inside him.

That's when he saw the sequin on the floor.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Andy followed the trail of sequins to the elevator. He found one inside, and he rode up and then down, checking every floor for more sequins. When he got to the basement, he found another one in the hall. He left the elevator, checking his surroundings often.

He found two more sequins. They stopped just outside the laundry doors. Glancing over his shoulders one more time, he silently opened the door and went in.

* * *

Alex entered the ballroom and walked around until she saw Lisa and then Darren. She scanned the room again and again, and did not see Katie or Andy. Finally, she interrupted Darren and asked him.

He told her the same thing he'd told Andy. "I told Andy that too, and I guess he went looking for her."

She pulled out her phone and texted Katie. Getting no response, she texted Andy. Again, there was no response.

* * *

Andy had remembered to turn off the ringer on his phone, but he forgot about the light. When the text came in, his phone lit up the corner he was hiding in like Christmas.

"We have company," Nicole said.

Andy heard Katie's pained cry. Then he heard something heavy hit the floor. He buried the lit phone in his pocket and hunched over, scurrying to a safer hiding place.

"There's no point in running, you know. I have all the time in the world."

The room was very dark, and Andy tripped on a loose towel on the floor. She saw him getting to his feet. Andy turned and ran, hard. Nicole Wallace followed.

* * *

Alex put the word out to the security team and was starting a floor by floor search when suddenly Bobby was at her side.

"Katie and Andy are missing," she told him, tight lipped. "Hotel security is helping. We're searching floor by floor."

As they walked by, the elevator door opened, but no one was on it. Bobby stepped back and caught the door with his hand. He saw a single blue sequin on the floor. "Alex," he said quietly.

She raced back and saw what he was looking at. Bobby thoroughly checked the floor near the elevator. "She's not on this floor," he said. He got in and waited for Alex to join him, then pushed every single button from the top to the bottom of the hotel.

* * *

Andy didn't want to leave the laundry room. He didn't know if Katie was alive or dead, and he didn't want to leave her. He was faster than Wallace, and had gained some distance. He stopped and looked at the surroundings. A rack was in front of him, and several large laundry sacks hung there. Behind it was a cart, like the ones the housekeepers used to put the dirty sheets in when they went room to room. Andy took down the middle laundry bag, opened it, and stuffed half the contents in the cart. As an afterthought, he ripped off his tie and tossed it in the bin. Then he stepped quietly back in the direction he'd come and hid in the darkest corner he could find.

He saw the needle in her hand as she walked by. It was full. Either she hadn't used one on Katie or she carried more than one with her. Nicole saw the bag, saw the cart, and smiled.

Andy didn't hang around to watch her kick the contents hoping to find him hiding amongst the dirty clothes. He walked until he was out of earshot, and then ran back in the direction of his lifelong friend.

Using his phone as a flashlight, he saw that she'd been stabbed. The knife was on the floor, and Katie was terrified. Afraid to make a noise, she looked at him, her eyes wide and her hands clasped over her side.

Andy held his finger to his lips, grabbed a towel from a stack nearby and set it under her hand so she could hold it against the wound. Next, he picked up the knife from the floor.

Wallace came back, as he knew she would. He didn't hide from her this time. Andy squared off with her, each of them armed and ready to kill.

* * *

When the doors opened at the basement level, Bobby saw the sequin right away. He waved to his wife, and they both headed down the hall. Two security guards approached.

"You got something?" One of them asked. "'Cause we didn't see anything."

"There's a sequin on the floor," Bobby said quietly. "K-the girl, she came this way." He sent the security guards in one direction, and he and Alex went the other.

At the door to the laundry, Bobby let Alex take the lead. She was active on the force, after all. And she was currently the only one of them who was armed. They entered slowly and cautiously. They could hear the voices in the back and walked carefully in that direction.

"You're just a boy," Nicole was saying, "and this isn't a video game, after all. You wouldn't know how to cut into real flesh."

"Why don't you come closer and find out?" Andy asked, sounding exactly like his Dad.

"You can't sneak out of this one, Nicole," Bobby warned, his chin down and eyes wide.

"Bobby, come to join the party, have you?" She checked her grip on the needle in her hand. Instead of lunging for Andy, she dropped and drew down on Katie.

Andy tackled her and stuck the knife in between her ribs. Blood spattered and her breath was labored.

Alex and Bobby rushed in and took over. Bobby got between Andy and Nicole while Alex checked that Katie was still alive.

"The needle missed," Alex said loudly. "She's all right, Bobby."

Andy stood behind Alex, nervously shifting his weight from foot to foot.

Bobby looked at Nicole a moment, saw that she was struggling, the knife still sticking in her chest. Her garbled breath filled the room, and he turned his back on her, to see about his daughter.

Andy shouted and Bobby felt the pain at the same time. Nicole Wallace had just plucked the knife from her own chest, insuring her death, and stabbed Bobby in the back.

Alex spurred Andy into action. He called 911 on his phone and shouted until the security guards joined them to tend to Katie and Bobby. By midnight, they were all at the hospital.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Bobby was on his side, his back stitched and wrapped and taking narcotics for the pain. Mike Logan was in the room with him, trying to help him get past the drugged fog he was in to understand what was going on.

"Katie, where's Katie?" Bobby asked again.

"She's out of surgery, and she's in the recovery room. Alex is with her."

"Wallace, what happened to-"

"She's dead."

"She's been dead before… twice before."

"She's dead and gone this time, Bobby. I saw her myself."

"Andy, what about—"

"Carolyn just called. He's been released. She's taking him home."

"He saved Katie's life, he can't go to jail, Mike."

"He's not going to. Bobby, relax. Let the medicine do its work. Get some rest."

"I'm gonna be sick," Bobby said. Mike grabbed a basin from the bedside table and held it until Bobby finished retching. It was a side effect of the pain medicine. A nurse came in and took care of the mess. After another ten minutes, and answering all the same questions one more time, Bobby finally fell asleep.

* * *

Alex was by his side the next time he woke. He lay very still and looked into her eyes. "Katie," he asked.

"She's getting stronger, same as you," Alex said. "They're saying she'll be out of ICU by tomorrow."

"Andy saved her," Bobby said.

Alex nodded, and a tear fell from her eye. She petted Bobby's head. "I'm so glad he was there," she said. "I wish I could have kept her from hurting you."

"Shouldn't of turned my back."

* * *

By the third day, Katie was in the same hospital room as her father. Having her near had really helped him in his own recovery. He slept more soundly, and was much less irritable.

Katie awoke and glanced around the room. She saw her father and tried to sit up. "Daddy?" Katie asked, as her mother held her shoulders to keep her from rising. "He's all right, Katie. They're going to release him in the next day or so."

"Mom? Did she hurt him?"

"It was her last act. But your Daddy's fine, and Nicole didn't survive. We'll never have to fear her again."

"She told me she was going to make me ugly," Katie said. "She said he wouldn't love me, then. I think she was trying to cut my breast, but I didn't let her."

"Oh, honey," Alex said quietly, brushing the curls back off her cheek. "No one could ever take away your beauty."

* * *

After three weeks, Bobby was almost fully recovered. He still had some stiffness when he used his right arm, but after a few minutes, even that would subside.

Katie was up and around, too. She would be home for one more week, and then she would head back to school to try to finish off her semester. The college was granting her extra time to complete her coursework. The Logans were over for dinner again, and the women were putting the finishing touches on the meal while the men were outside tinkering with the mustang. Bobby grew tired and went to sit on the porch stoop. Mike joined him, and they found themselves talking about Andy.

"Self-defense, all charges were dropped," Mike said. "The DA's office is grateful to have Nicole Wallace out of the picture."

"I can't ever thank him enough," Bobby said. "None of us thought she would go for Katie. He's got some very quick reflexes."

"All those damn video games," Mike complained, but with a smile on his face. He bumped Goren with his elbow. "Katie would have done the same for him."

Bobby nodded, but he still felt he needed to find a way to show Andy just how grateful he was.

"Dinner!" Carolyn called as she walked outside. Mike put his arm around her and they all watched while Andy finished what he was doing and pushed the hood back into place. He jogged over to the porch and helped Bobby to his feet.

"It shouldn't knock so much now, Uncle Bobby," Andy said.

"Well. I guess you'll have to be the one to find out about that," Bobby said, and handed him the keys. "It's yours, Andy."

All of the Logans were stunned.

"You won't mind if I visit her every once in a while, will you?"

"Heck no, Uncle Bobby! I can't believe it!" They all walked happily into the house, where Andy announced the news to Alex and Katie.

Alex put an arm around Bobby's waist. She smiled up at him with approval, and he kissed her deeply. The house was filled with cheerful noise as the two families joined around the dinner table.

And the cake that Katie carried out from the kitchen for dessert said simply, "Congratulations Eagle Scout."

THE END


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